The Twisted Side of Love
by Melody of Words
Summary: Every true love story has its dark side- from Romeo and Juliet to Melissa and Jackson. It's time to reveal the side of love that isn't unveiled until you're in too deep... but who said you'd ever regret it? Chapter 11 up!
1. Chapter 1: Anguish

**Author's Note: Hey, this is my first fic. The first chapter is kinda rushed and a little long… ok, very long, but I'm very proud of it! The title I'm not so happy about. So, I will appreciate criticism, even flames (*gulp*) but I'd really, really love it if there was no cursing. Please read and review! **

**Chapter 1**

I gazed at him while he worked, chopping wood for the fire. I looked at him like there was no tomorrow, which might as well have been true. I wanted to memorize him before I ignored him forever. And why was I going to ignore him? I'm not exactly ready to answer that. I just stared at him. I saw his muscled arms, tensed as they raised the makeshift axe high; arms that I wanted to hold me… I felt my heart tremble. I memorized his dark brown hair, hair that I knew was soft now from lack of gel, hair that I wanted to run my fingers through… my heart skipped a beat… I gazed at his chest as he turned slightly towards me, and I could see the outline of his abs through his T-shirt… my heart was suddenly pierced with a deep crack and I nearly gasped out loud. Yes, he was hot. Yes, I loved him for more than that. But, it's not like I could look at his heart without crying or something. So, as he turned towards me and I caught sight of his square jaw- crack- I quickly turned away as if I'd never spent the whole of five minutes just staring at him. I turned right before I could catch his deep blue eyes, right before my heart broke completely. I bent down towards the cloth in my lap. That was it. It was over. No more looking at him or talking to him. Nothing.

I tried to focus on my sewing. When Daley found out I could sew, she had Jackson make a makeshift needle and I pulled fibers from coconut husks to mend the numerous rips and tears in our clothing. I swear, by the time we get off this island, I'll need glasses.

And then, all of a sudden, he started humming. And my heart didn't break; it shattered into a million pieces and left me with a great void, dark, hard and cold, where my heart once rested. He was humming the song he wrote for Taylor the night he told her he loved her. I'd forgotten how much his voice affected me. I still remembered her shriek of joy and his reprimand, asking her to keep it low because he wasn't ready for the others- me- to know yet. I remembered him kissing her, softly at first, before she pushed him on the ground and literally shoved her tongue in his mouth. I remembered running away, my hand clapped over my mouth, heartbroken. Well, not entirely. I had been counting on it being a dream. That was before I saw the hickey on Taylor's neck today that she "tried" to cover up.

Of course, I couldn't really focus on my sewing because Jackson brushed right past me, his arm briefly touching mine, as he passed on his way out of the forest. I was surprised my heart didn't tremble. I felt nothing. He stopped.

"Sorry, Mel," he said quickly. Sorry. He's sorry for brushing against me. Heaven knows I would have forgiven him for more than that if he would just accept me. I would have forgiven him if he had killed me, which I wouldn't have minded since that would have ended the hard numbness... Oh crap. I sounded so emo.

"It's alright. You don't need to apologize," I murmured softly without looking up. And it was true. He never would need to apologize, not for breaking my heart or cracking it or lying to me. It really wasn't fair, and I wished I could make him pay, but nooo, life handed me the soft heart. Life just isn't fair, you know? Now, I guessed I had no heart.

As he walked on his way out of the forest and away from me (Eric claimed there were too many people at camp and it was too crowded for me), I finished the shirt I was working on. It had a hole the size of a pinhead, so it didn't take long. In fact, it shouldn't have needed to be fixed since it barely had a hole. For the first time, I really looked at the shirt I was fixing. It was a pink and white horizontally striped, low cut, very ruffled, very sparkly halter tank- Taylor's. I vaguely remembered her complaining that the small hole gave her a draft and nearly laughed hysterically at the irony.

"Jackson?" I asked softly, surprised to hear my voice crack. I practically whispered his name, so it was a surprise to see him turn to me.

"Yeah?" he asked. I still didn't look up. Instead, I stuck her shirt out and looked away from him by pretending to sort through the basket of clothes at my feet.

"Could you take this to Taylor? It's her shirt."

Jackson walked to me and took the shirt from my hands. "Sure," he answered. He hesitated before asking, "You okay, Mel?" I looked up involuntarily and saw his deep blue eyes. I expected no pain because of the loss of my heart, but instead I felt a horrible, consuming burning in that hole of mine, giving no light or life to my empty shell, but burning it darker and darker.

"I'm fine," I lied, trying not to wince at the horrible burning. Even after he left, the burning continued, making me harder and colder, yet fiercer and fierier. The burning shook the hole, almost as if something was within. Oh, I'm fine, Jackson. Thanks for asking.

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The day ended very soon, and we were all encamped around the campfire, huddled together in couples under blankets. Unfortunately. Jackson and Taylor cuddled each other "subtly" as Daley and Nathan shot them weird looks from under their blanket. This, of course, left me and Eric to try our best and warm ourselves under a blanket together and at the same time try not to touch each other. Basically, half of me was shivering from the cold, and the other half was shivering from being close to Eric. Finally I couldn't stand the way Taylor shot me little smug looks as she rubbed herself against Jackson while he pretended not to notice.

"Taylor! Why don't you tell us about you and Jackson?" I said cheerfully. I couldn't stand the way Jackson tried to hide it. He shot me a surprised glance and I caught it from the corner of my eye, but refused to look at him. Taylor glanced at Jackson, as if to ask for permission. He gave an almost imperceptible shake of his head and she gave a disappointed huff. Obviously, she had been looking forward to rubbing the fact that Jackson was hers in my face. Rolling her eyes and giving a look that clearly said, "I'm only saying this because of Jackson," she answered.

"There's nothing going on! We're just friends, Melissa." Yet, the way she said my name in her sickly sweet voice told me otherwise.

"Really? That's not what it looked like last night!" I smiled just as falsely. "If I remember correctly, that was a VERY hot and heavy make out session you two were having." Jackson looked up sharply and Taylor raised an eyebrow smugly.

"How?" I heard Jackson's hoarse voice, interrupting Taylor just as she opened her mouth. My face became stubborn, the smile wiped off my face.

"I heard singing on the way to camp, found you two, saw the smacking, and went to camp. End of story."

"We were going to tell you guys," Taylor said with a little giggle. I turned away from them, my mouth twisting as I drank some boiled water from the husk at my foot. "Are you over him?" Taylor asked suddenly. I turned to see her idiotic flirtatious grin morph into a sly grin. Jackson didn't see it; he was studying his feet. Eric was currently passed out from the shock. Naturally, Nathan and Daley were staring at me. I met her eyes with a cold smirk.

"Why would I fall for a guy who doesn't have the guts to tell a girl he isn't into her?" I asked. Jackson lifted his eyes again.

"That isn't why-" he began, but I plowed on.

"-Or a guy who leads girls on. I'm not into players." Taylor pursed her lips, clearly disappointed at my reaction. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to pour water on Eric. He passed out, you know." I cannot begin to describe how good it felt to stand up strong. I cannot begin to describe how horrifying it was to stand up heartless. I can tell you that I hope Eric recovers. Which is weird.

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I sat next to Eric as he sputtered, still wet.

"Look, I don't know who you think you are, but I am a citizen of America and you have no right to touch me!" he yelled. I rolled my eyes. Eric was under the impression that I wasn't a U.S. citizen.

"Eric! I was born in California!" I exclaimed. He looked at me, dumbfounded.

"Wha? You didn't jump the border? No fence climbing?" I started laughing.

"No, you idiot. My family's from China! Even if I did come illegally, I'd have to jump over the Pacific Ocean, not a fence!" I said when I could catch my breath. Why was this funny to me? No idea. Maybe the loss of my heart meant the loss of some brain cells. Eric was looking at me funny, almost in a daze.

"You have a nice laugh…" he looked surprised."Or maybe it's just 'cause you never laugh." I cocked my head.

"Of course I laugh! I just don't laugh much now." My tone was angry and defensive, and I immediately regretted it. "Sorry," I mumbled, ducking my head.

"It's alright," he said, leaning his head back and closing his eyes. "You're probably still upset over Jackson and Taylor." I looked up sharply, wincing as I got whiplash.

"What are you talking about? I'm not upset! I'm not into Jackson anymore!" Eric just smirked. "Yeah? Well, can you blame me? I was led on and he made me think he was going to choose me! I'm so gullible…" Somewhere along the rant, my tone had become despair. Eric didn't move.

"Yeah, I know the feeling," he said simply. "Sucks, huh?" That's when I remembered. Eric practically worshipped Taylor, something about seeing her faint in class.

"Yeah… I'm sorry," I said, feeling horrible for complaining in front of Eric. Which is weird. Again.

"You know what the worst part is? I can't even be mad at her! I could punch Jackson, but I couldn't even yell at her. What the heck? I'm Eric! I'm not supposed to feel this way! I take revenge! I get mad! I get what I want! So WHAT'S HAPPENING TO ME?" His face was red.

"I know what you mean. For some strange reason, I can't even think of being mean to him. I could yell at Taylor all day - stop looking at me like that, I could- but I've already forgiven him. I shouldn't have! I don't want to! But I already have! It's so, so, so… sucky!"

"What can you do?" Eric asked helplessly.

"You know what's worse?" I asked him, not expecting an answer.

"The fact that everyone but us is coupled? And that we have no friends to turn to?" he answered. I was taken aback, and I looked him over before nodding.

"Well… we have each other. And I promise I won't betray you or anything, even though you probably won't believe me because of that whole video incident…" I was a bit shocked. Eric had a heart? Since when?

"Of course I believe you," I interrupted his musings softly. "You're all I got. Plus," I added after seeing his face, "you're kinda amazing when you're not being a jerk. Thanks." Eric grinned.

"So, if I'm in danger, you'll still save me again?" he asked teasingly. I punched his shoulder lightly.

"Always." I don't know what made us do it, but we both did it at the same time. Really. I didn't start it, and neither did he. It just happened. So please, please don't hurt me when I say that…

We kissed.

A/N: So there you go! My first chapter. *sigh* I just love MelissaxJackson... anyway, please click the review button! You know you want to...


	2. Chapter 2: Wishes

**A/N: Yes! My second chapter in only a day! Warning: Major angst. Also, Mel does a bit of Jackson bashing *winces*. It hurts me, too, I'm sorry. I promise this is a Jelissa story. And thanks to jelissalover for her review and support! I never realized how much a review can make a person's day until now. Anyway, I present to you chapter two...**

* * *

Chapter 2: Wishes

"Morning, Mel," Eric greeted me as he passed by. I smiled. It was nice to have someone who was in the same boat with me, but it was pretty confusing because our relationship was suddenly strange. What exactly were we? Did one kiss make a difference?

I was boiling the water today since Eric's ankle had made a miraculous recovery and my sewing was temporarily done with. I filtered and poured and finally just relaxed and closed my eyes as the water boiled. It felt so good to have the island sun soak into my face and massage my stress away, yet so strange to have something so warm and substantial touch someone so hollow.

"I'm not a player." Jackson's disgruntled voice interrupted my relaxation time. I sighed. So much for stress relief.

"You led me to believe I had a chance with you. You. Are. A. Player. Luckily for you, Taylor is okay with that!" I had to spit the words out of my mouth and hold back the apology that threatened to spill out. How could I be so cruel to Jackson? What was I thinking? Shouldn't I just let him explain himself and wait patiently? That's what Mel would do, and how better to get my heart back? Avoiding his gaze, I checked the water in the pot. It still wasn't boiling. Darn; I'd wanted an excuse not to look at him.

"Mel-" he was cut short by a squeal from none other than the Malibu Barbie herself.

"Jackie! I missed you!" Taylor planted a very wet, sloppy kiss on her new boyfriend's mouth before turning to shoot me another smug look. I didn't pay attention to her though, but I just had to smirk when I saw Jackson try to subtly wipe away her spit. Of course, if I ever did go out with Jackson, I wasn't sure how I'd like kissing Taylor-infected lips. I held back a shudder.

"Mel! I didn't see you there! What are you doing there **ALL ALONE, BY YOURSELF**?" Taylor asked innocently. And just like that, I didn't want Jackson to explain himself. How can the deepest, wisest, most profound guy I know want the most shallow girl ever? What's there to explain?

"I'm taking my job back since Eric's ankle is better." Our conversation was interrupted by none other than Eric himself, and I have to admit, I never thought I'd ever be as happy to see him as I was then.

"Mel! Can you-," he panted, "help me?" He was lugging three gallons of water and had apparently run back. I smiled. Typical Eric; he always tried to get his work done as quickly as possible, no matter how sloppy the ending was.

"Eric!" I said, shaking my head, "Running with the water only makes you more tired!" Even so, I helped him put two gallons of water down without spilling too much water. As I reached for the last one, he suddenly fumbled with it, sloshing half of the water on me. I gasped as the cold water hit me, instantly making my skin break out in goosebumps.

"Aah! What the heck, Eric!" I exclaimed, trying to wring the water out of my shirt. He tried to smother his laughter before erupting with a snort into guffaws.

"You should- see- yourself! Your hair-" his words became incomprehensible as he guffawed again, taking a strand of my hair into his hands and laughing at it. Finally, when he was done, he said, "That's for pouring water on me." My jaw dropped.

"Are you telling me that you planned this?" I asked in a deceptively mild tone. He nodded, still choked with laughter.

"Then you won't mind if I do this," I said while dumping the other half of the gallon jug on him. Now it was his turn to splutter.

"Hey! We were even!" he managed to exclaim.

"You were passed out! It was the only way to wake you up! Now we're even," I argued.

"No, we're not."

"Yes, we are!"

"No, we're not!"

"Yes, we are!"

"No!"

"Yes!"

"No!"

"Yes!"

"Oh, alright. Seeing your hair like this is more than enough anyway," he conceded, touching my hair again. "But, you might want to take my job. Running around and sweating will help dry you off. You're lucky I'm letting you have this opportunity," he said, wagging his eyebrows. I sighed. He was such a sweet snob.

"You are so lucky I'm doing this for you. Give me those," I said resignedly as I pointed to the water jugs. That's when I finally noticed that Jackson and Taylor were still there, watching the whole thing.

"Don't you guys, like, hate each other?" Taylor asked, wearing a dumbfounded expression. Eric answered for me.

"Nope. Not since last night," he said as a half smile crept onto his face. Taylor was shocked, and I could see the rusty gears in her head furiously turning as she tried to figure out what had happened last night.

"Last night?" Jackson asked. Eric nodded his assent, suddenly not quite so warm.

"Well… I gotta get us some water. Eric, look behind you. The water's boiling out of the pot," I told him calmly before turning away. I couldn't help but let out a little chuckle as I heard him furiously exclaim as he tried to stop it.

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I spent the day getting water to camp. My sneakers and jeans were splattered with water and mud since I was so distracted by my thoughts. Even Daley had to shake her head, and she normally worked the hardest. Isn't it strange how one guy changed me? I had no idea of whether this was for better or for worse, but still I knew that Jackson had changed me.

There I was, musing over my life and how it seemed to have taken a turn for the worst. By this, I mean besides crashing on an island. I always did love Romeo and Juliet, even though they had a sad ending. I wanted my love story to be as happy as their tale was sad but just as romantic. But Romeo and Juliet didn't have a dark side like mine. Well, besides the dying and being forbidden to love each other. But at least Juliet's Romeo loved her back. It's not like Romeo disregarded his words to Juliet and chose to go back and love Rosalie. And Juliet never was confused about her feelings for Count Paris, either. She loved Romeo and he loved her. Cinderella got her Prince Charming. Snow White got her prince. Fairy tales and love stories never say anything about the darkness and the fear and the possible heartbreak and the probable angst that comes with love. They never even let you consider the possibility of your love not loving you back. And since I'd read fairy tales and love stories all my life… well, you can imagine the disappointment and the angst that was added. Would I ever get the guy? Would I have to go with Eric?

Eric. What were we? Sure, he'd turned out to be sweet, but I didn't love him. OK, so maybe I hadn't stopped our kiss. But maybe I was just out of options! I just couldn't let myself settle for Eric. We'd both be unhappy. You would think the opposite, wouldn't you? It would make sense for the outgoing yet sweet guy to be with the reserved but sweet (I hope) girl. It wouldn't make sense for the girl to fall in love with the bad boy, or for the guy to fall for the shallow girl. If we did go out, we'd be forever pining for what couldn't be. But I didn't want to be a piner! And I didn't want to be a one-sided lover! You would think that with Jackson being the way he is right now that I would hate him.

If I hated him- which I should- then why did I continually avoid his piercing blue eyes? I wanted to say that it was because I hated him, but I knew better. I avoided him because I could never let him see how much I felt for him, how much he affected me. That would just scare him away more. But I just wished that he would've chosen the one girl who would've been there for him even if he'd gotten into trouble again. I wish that Taylor hadn't gotten her paws on him. I wish he had been a guy who didn't just care about appearances. I even wish Eric wasn't so sweet so I wouldn't be so confused!

If only there was no dark side to love.

**A/N: Hey! Thanks for reading. I'm really proud of this story, and I hope I don't get writer's block. Please, please, PLEASE review! It's that beautiful green button down in the center. Click! I accept anonymous reviews!**


	3. Chapter 3: Nothing

**A/N: Hey guys! I managed to finish chapter 3! I think I'm getting obsessed with this story, too, because I stayed up so late that I didn't wake up until it was too late to catch the bus! :O Luckily, my mom dropped me off, so that was ok. Anyways, this chapter also contains angst. It also unfortunately contains Taylor and Jackson. There's a bit of Mel and Eric ( I like making Eric sweet), but there's also a tiny tidbit of Jelissa. Anyways, before I totally spoil this chapter for you, here you go! I hope you're as satisfied with it as I am. :)**

**Chapter 3: Nothing**

All that night I was plagued with the day's events.

_If only there was no dark side to love._

Taylor kissing Jackson.

Jackson defending himself.

My argument with the bane of my existence himself.

Eric.

Jackson.

The Malibu Barbie.

Eric.

Jackson.

… (My five minutes of sleep)

**JACKSON**.

Why was it that on a camp with seven people on an otherwise deserted island, besides the captain and the others of course, I still couldn't control the romance in my life?

I ended up waking before everyone else and taking a shower. Jackson may have changed me into something stronger and fiercer- not to mention stranger- but I wouldn't have survived without Lex. None of us would have. So naturally, while taking a shower, I managed to keep my mind off of a certain heartbreaker by thinking of the boy who invented our camp shower. I was even happier when I saw Lex awake and fiddling with a plastic cup and a tarp.

"Good morning, Lex!" I greeted him cheerfully.

"'Morning, Melissa. Is anyone else up yet?" he asked. I shook my head.

"No, not that I know of. What're you doing?" Our conversation sounded oddly formal that morning, and I hoped it was my imagination.

"You know that contraption Nathan tried to set up before Daley found our watering hole?" Lex asked. Without waiting for an answer, he continued. "Well, I'm trying to recreate that. We need a backup source of water. Weather conditions could make that place dry up. Better safe than sorry right? Plus, I don't think the air here is polluted. You would get all natural pure water this way." I nodded again, considering his idea. Suddenly, his genius demeanor vanished and he spoke in a voice that reminded me he was still a 10 year old boy. "Could you help me dig a hole and set it up, Mel?" he asked. I smiled. If you can resist the charm of a vulnerable, 10 year old genius, then good for you! But I couldn't.

"Of course, Lex. Tell me what I need to do." That was how Nathan and Daley found us, covered in sand and sweat, the effects of my shower wasted.

"Hey, are you trying to make that old solar powered water trapping device?" Nathan asked. I wiped the sweat from my forehead before nodding. He didn't answer, and I knew he thought we were being idiots. I didn't really care. Lex had a point and he'd never been wrong before.

Right then, Malibu Barbie dragged the Bane of My Existence out of the tent while Eric followed with a morose look on his face.

"But, like, didn't Nathan try that already? Isn't it obvious that that's pointless? I mean, our water can't dry up, right? 'Cause I need my showers!" Taylor cut in, bouncing as always. Jackson rubbed his face tiredly before looking at what we were doing.

"We could need it. We might be here for long, Taylor," Lex said without looking up at her.

"Look, I know everyone says you're a genius and all, but you can't be that smart! We're not gonna be here long enough for us to run out of water," she laughed, reaching down to rumple Lex's hair the wrong way. His eyes widened and he blew a puff of air in irritation. Taylor chose that moment to subtly hit me.

"Right, Jackie?" she cooed. I winced and waited for his reply, still working with Lex. Subtly, I straightened his hair, and he shot me a grateful look.

"No, it's a good idea. Let me help," I heard him answer. I watched from the corner of my eye as he walked next to Lex and helped set up the tarp. My insides did a happy dance, or maybe I was just hungry.

"What?! With her?! What about me?" Taylor whined. What _about_ you, I wanted to retort.

"Help make breakfast. I'm sure Mel and Lex are starving," Jackson answered. Taylor hesitated for a moment before groaning in frustration and stomping away.

"Lex and Mel are hungry! Make them food!" she yelled before stomping away in the direction of the shower.

"Lex, what are you planning to do with the water when you get some?" Jackson asked.

"I'm going to store it in extra gallon jugs. Either way, Eric won't always have to run to the watering hole for us. In fact, I better find an extra jug. Can you guys work here 'til I get back?" Lex asked.

"Sure," I answered.

"Yeah," Jackson said. Lex ran off.

"He's gotten thinner," I noted aloud.

"He's too worried and works too hard," Jackson answered.

"Right." We worked in silence for about a minute until Jackson spoke.

"So, what about you and Eric?" he asked casually. I tripped over a stick in surprise and half of the tarp fell over. Naturally, I blushed furiously. Stupid genes.

"What about us?" I tried to answer casually while picking up the tarp.

"I saw you kiss."

Crap. I blushed even harder.

"Was that what Eric meant by "last night," or was there something more?" His voice was calm, and my stomach dropped. Strangely enough, it wasn't in fear or embarrassment. I was actually mad and sad and in despair because he didn't care that I had kissed Eric. It didn't affect him. Was I nothing to him now?

Or had I always been nothing?

"Why do you care?" I asked, hoping to God that he did care. Oh, please, please, please, please, please…

"It's not a good idea to have relationships on the island." Really?

"Hypocrite," I muttered and finally looked at him. He looked embarrassed. Why was he embarrassed?

"This thing with Taylor…" he began, "it's not really a-"

"Don't say it's not a relationship. Don't deny it. Giving it another name doesn't hide what it is," I cut him off. I stopped working to face him, and he did the same.

"I can't deny what it appears to be. I can say what it feels like to me." We looked at each other for a long moment before I finally answered.

"Then what does it feel like to you, Jackson?" I asked him quietly. I was already afraid of the answer.

"I- I," he exhaled slowly, "I don't' know." And suddenly he looked so vulnerable that I remembered how much I cared and I wanted to hug him and help him. His eyes were pleading with me- pleading for me not to be cruel or cold but to help him. I wanted to, so very much, and already my arms were reaching for him, lifting from their place at my side because I couldn't deny what I felt for him; I couldn't disguise it, and I felt a hot glow in that dark hole of mine when suddenly-

"Jackie!" His face changed, he leaned away from me and ran his hands through his hair. My arms dangled limply by my sides.

Just like that, I was nothing again.

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"Do you feel like nothing when you're with Taylor and Jackson walks in?" I asked Eric later by the fire. Lex had gone to bed early like he had the night everyone found about Taylor and Jackson. Nathan and Daley were off somewhere "getting fruit" at midnight, and Taylor was with Jackson, probably doing the same thing. Eric frowned, scrunching his eyebrows together, and I had to smile. He was so adorable sometimes.

"Not nothing… no, I feel angry and mad like I want to punch the guy and give him a black eye, so I definitely don't feel like nothing. Why, do you?" he answered.

"No, I don't want to give Jackson a black eye. I could give you a black eye if you aren't careful, though," I joked.

"I don't think so. You're too _kind_," he said, saying "kind" as if it was a disease. I raised my eyebrows.

"Remember Andy's face in freshman year and how he said it was because he got hit by a car or something stupid like that?" I asked him. Eric winced as he remembered and nodded. I grinned.

"I did that."

"You gave him a bloody nose?" Eric asked incredulously.

"Yup. He tried to come onto me, if you know what I mean. I take karate, you know," I informed him. He inched away from me.

"Great. That's wonderful. Hey, maybe you could punch Jackson for me? Give him a little shove or two?" he suggested. I glared at him.

"Right, right, you're in love and all," he cowered. "It was just a joke. Sheesh!"

"Karate is for self defense alone. And for tournaments," I added.

"Well, do you feel like nothing?" Eric asked, suddenly changing the subject. I looked away.

"Maybe." There was silence for a few minutes, except for the waves. Finally, Eric put an arm hesitantly around my shoulders.

"Do you feel like nothing now?" he asked.

"Not so much," I answered turning to smile at him.

"If Jackson were doing this, then would you feel like nothing?"

"No. Unless you made him do it. Then I'd feel bad," I answered truthfully.

Behind us, the leaves rustled and we heard heavy panting. Quickly, Eric dropped his arm from my shoulders, mouthing a "Sorry." I went cold as Taylor and Jackson stepped out from behind us, Taylor giggling breathily. The moonlight shone on her new hickey, and Taylor took Jackson's arm and put it around her waist. Beside me, I felt Eric stiffen, and I felt myself grow numb.

"That was so much fun! We should do that again!" Taylor giggled and I hated her for it. I hated her fingers as she ran them through his hair, and I hated her hair as he let a strand slip through his fingers. I couldn't see his face, or what expression was on it, but I knew for a fact that mine was as plain as day. Even with Eric there, I felt myself shrink before her.

Why did she have to be so beautiful? She may have been a brainless Barbie doll, but she was also beautiful. The moonlight gave a silver glow to her golden hair, and her blue eyes sparkled in excitement. Just what had they done anyway? How far had they gone? My eyes widened as I realized what they might have been doing, and I nearly cried.

_Stay strong, Mel, stay strong, don't let him see you like this, don't let him know how much it hurts you to see him ask you for help and then throw it all away as if it never happened, don't let him know how it hurts to be nothing…_

I looked down at my feet and blinked so that a few tears fell out. I wiped my face quickly before

I looked up to see Eric standing.

"Eric," Jackson acknowledged.

"Chief."

No one said anything to me. Even with Eric there, I was nothing again. I could practically feel myself ebbing away. This time I knew I sounded emo. And I did nothing to stop it because I couldn't deny what was wrong with me. Giving it another name wouldn't have changed the fact that I was irrevocably lovesick and the only cure was in the arms of a blonde beauty who hated me.

I was nothing.

It was yet another Melissa who stood up and walked with Eric to the tent.

"Oh, Mel! I didn't see you there!" I heard Taylor exclaim from behind me. I stopped and turned halfway towards her.

"It's Melissa." The girl who is fast disappearing.

**A/N: I really should stop the angst now. Anyway, as always, I'd really love to read your reviews! Thank you to jelissalover, Sugar144, and the Anonymous reviewers, and anyone else I forgot or haven't seen yet! You guys make my day!**


	4. Chapter 4: Metamorphosis

**A/N: Hey! I took a little longer updating because this chapter is crucial for Mel. Thanks for all the reviews! :D Anyways, there is NO Jaylor in here (*does happy dance*), there's barely any Meric, but it's more of a Melissa time kind of chapter. Anyway, you can skip onto the story if you want, but I have to reply to HopefullyHelpful because he/she is an Anonymous Reviewer. HopefullyHelpful: I appreciate your review, and I read it after I uploaded chapter 3, so Lex had already appeared. I am a Jelissa fan to the end, and Taylor's attitude will be revealed later in the story. This IS fanfiction, so characters will most likely be OOC, just because I'm a fangirl who was upset when Taylor became nice and attracted to Jackson. ;) I haven't revealed Jackson's motivation for picking Taylor because you may have noticed this is in Mel's perspective, and she can't read people's minds. Otherwise, this story would've been done in one chapter! I'm glad you said what you did about Mel being a doormat, but I really can't see her marching up to Jackson and forcing him to look at her. However, if you read this chapter, I'm hoping it'll be more realistic for you. Thanks for reading!**

**Disclaimer: Yes, I know I forgot this for the past 3 chapters, but in case it isn't obvious, this little piece of fanfiction is all I own that has to do with Flight 29 Down. *sigh***

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The needle in my hand so sharp… the numbness inside of me… if I were to pierce myself, would I feel that? I slowly tried to prick myself. Not hard enough. I raised the needle high and pointed it straight at my wrist. Can nothing feel anything? The hand holding the needle adjusted the point of it's own accord, and like slow motion, it brought it down, on its way to stab my wrist… everything moved so slowly and I closed my eyes so I wouldn't see the sharp point split flesh… and I dropped the needle. My iron hard grip had relaxed suddenly, and I heard the soft thump as I felt the needle slip from my hand… I felt my wrist get slapped by my hand, curled into a fist, now without the needle, and I opened my eyes. Had I almost stabbed myself? If that needle hadn't dropped… I shuddered to think of what might have happened.

What was happening to me? Why had I suddenly become so dark and hopeless? When did everything change?

I was tired of being nothing, tired of feeling used, and so very tired of being tired. Alright, so maybe I had fallen so much for Jackson that there was no going back. Maybe he happened to be my cure. But I was tired of just lying down and taking whatever was thrown at me, especially the crap from Taylor. If I was truly honest with myself, then I'd know exactly what to do. Love means that when someone pushes you away for someone else, you let him go. You don't cry and throw things and cut yourself. No, you can't fall out of love. But you can show just how much you feel for the one who's rejected you. If I really loved him like I claimed, then I'd let him go. It was time for me to show Jackson (and myself) exactly what I felt and that there was more to me than nothing. Maybe this would also tell me what I felt, and whether I was just imagining all my feelings. And just when I decided this, the very moment I felt that this was the right way for me, just for a second, I felt a tiny piece of death spark to life in my hole. No longer nothing.

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Two weeks later, I sat with Eric and sewed while he filtered the water. Apparently, there was room for me at camp now.

"You've changed," he observed out of the blue.

"I hope so."

"Why?"

"Why do I hope so or why have I changed?"

"Both," he answered after a moment's hesitation.

"I'm tired of being nothing."

"And?"

"That's it; that's the answer to both of your questions. Do you mind? I don't have a thimble, so if you distract me then you have to bandage all cuts," I said right when I poked myself in the finger with the needle.

"Geez, lady, chill!" he exclaimed. I rolled my eyes.

"Fine, you want to talk about this?" I asked him, setting my needle and clothing down abruptly. "Then we will. Why do you like Taylor?"

"She's fragile. Your turn: why do you love Jackson?"

"Like."

"Oh, please, you would've cussed him out by now if you just liked him," he waved off my disagreement.

"He's gentle yet tough, vulnerable yet strong, misguided but a leader, compassionate yet cold, open yet closed, afraid and brave. He chooses to do something for the good of others rather than just waiting around. He doesn't trust himself, so he's humble, and he tries to survive alone although he knows he needs us. He judges himself for a past that wasn't his fault. Maybe I just like the fact that he's not full of himself?" I finished before taking a breath. Eric gave me a blank look.

"You just told me a whole paragraph of things that you like about Jackson and you say it's just for a little while? Stop being dumb _yet_ smart. What made you attracted to him in the first place at school?" he asked.

"He… was the new guy and I was intrigued?" I asked helplessly.

"Right. That's why you even got Abby to let Jackson on for free! Geez, aren't Asians supposed to be smart?"

"That's a stereotype!" I protested.

"A true one," he shot back.

"Like blondes are dumb?" I asked.

"Hey! You leave Taylor out of this!" he exclaimed. I shook my head in exasperation.

"Eric. You're blond."

"I knew that, I just thought that you were talking about her. I didn't think you would insult me. Yeah, that's it. Besides I'm more of a dirty blondish brown."

"Oh, shut up."

"You!" he shot back. I sighed.

"OK, maybe it was because he didn't bother giving me one of those weird, fake smiles most guys give me…" I conceded thoughtfully. "See? I told you! It's not love, it's just a crush."

"Why do you hate those smiles?"

"Because, normally I get them from perverts or from guys who won't ever give me a freakin chance because I'm a AP student who's a goody-two-shoes, and who think that I'm so desperate I'll throw myself from any guys!"

"And… you're not?" he asked.

"_ERIC_!"

"I'm kidding! Jeez, woman, get a grip."

"Anyways. He looked at me, and even though he didn't smile or do anything really, I suddenly felt really good that maybe here was someone I could trust," I remisced.

"What about Nathan?"

"Well, of course I have Nathan. He's my best friend! Just, that day, all he did was complain about Daley winning the election," I remembered. "Anyways, how can you like a girl for being fragile?" I asked him, trying to change the subject.

"I like the idea of caring for someone and having them depend on me," Eric said rubbing his chin thoughtfully. It was strange; I think I spotted a bit of a beard-thing on his face.

"So, you don't really care about Taylor, you just someone to lean on you?" I asked, slightly confused.

"I didn't say that! At first, yes. Before, I just thought she was pretty enough to be my girlfriend…" he glared at me when I scoffed, "… but now I'm seeing this whole new part of her. I get to see how she looks in the morning before all that makeup, and I get to be in her little schemes. You know how thrilling it is to do something bad?" he asked me before stopping in shock. I glared at him.

"It must be a real thrill to hurt people, you jerk!" I exclaimed. Strangely enough, I was only a little miffed.

"I mean… there's something that's weirdly cool for me about having a partner in crime… but then she went with that goody goody 'Jackie!'" his voice became hard.

"Why did they choose each other anyway?" I asked him. He shrugged before giving a mischievous glance.

"You feel like finding out?"

"Duh. Did you not hear what I just said?" I asked him, getting exasperated again. I never really considered blondes dumb, since I was already totally against stereotypes, but sometimes Eric just made me wonder…

"Then all you gotta do is…"

"Wait- you have a plan?" I asked. My pulse quickened. Something like a plot, like what Taylor did on a regular basis? I felt strangely excited. Just what twisted idea had Eric concocted.?

"'Duh,'" he said, imitating me, "all you really have to do is ask him." Oh. Nevermind.

I shook my head. "Already tried that. Taylor interrupted, and I was getting so close!"

"Well, then," he said patiently like I was stupid, "I ask her when you ask him so there'll be no interrupting."

"Ohhh…"

"And you said I was stupid."

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"Hey, Mel! Where've you been?" asked a grinning Nathan. I hadn't talked to him in a week, mainly because he was always with Daley and I was always with Eric or Lex.

"Hi, Nathan. I haven't really seen you much, either. So, are you and Daley going to make it official or just pretend that you have a secret relationship when everyone knows about it?"

"Oh, everything's gonna be revealed tonight," Daley said mysteriously. She had popped up from behind Nathan.

"What're you talking about? Did you two plan something?" I asked. I was a bit uncomfortable with EVERYTHING being revealed.

"You'll see," Daley answered with a spark of excitement in her gray eyes.

"Day, can I not be in this?" I asked hopefully. Her eyes suddenly grew hard like stone.

"No. We're all doing this. The only person who gets an exception is Lex. It'll be his bedtime."

"That's nepotism!" I protested. She looked a little surprised at my rebellion but brushed it off.

"Well… not everything that's gonna be revealed is stuff that I want Lex to know about, like me and Nathan," she said guiltily.

"You realize that he already knows? And that all you're doing is pushing him away?" I asked.

"Mel. It'll just be so weird to admit something like that to my little brother. Just… please?" she pleaded with me. I couldn't believe that Daley Marin was pleading with me not to judge her for not including her brother.

"Fine. But if he gets mad at you, don't expect me to fix it."

Jackson chose that moment to walk in, so Daley hurriedly ran over and vaguely explained her plan for the evening. I heard her ask him to relay the message to Taylor.

"Can you do that yourself? We had a little fight," he asked tiredly.

"Over what?"

"Whether we should ignore Melissa. She said we should, and I said no."

"Hello? I'm right here," I told him, feeling a little bit invisible. But, not anymore. I was taking my life into my own hands. Jackson was going to acknowledge that I existed and not just brush me off or lead me on, but he was going to-

"I know," he said, turning to face me. Geez. I never could finish my rants now.

"Well, instead of just talking like I don't exist, you can remember that I'm here and you can't just brush me off like I don't matter," I told him defiantly.

"Preach it, Mel!" Eric joked as he walked through camp to drop off water. "Hey Nathan, Daley. Chief."

"Eric," Jackson nodded. Eric took two empty jugs and walked back into the jungle.

I sighed. Boys. Or were they men? When exactly did a boy turn into a man?

"When he learns to take care of and appreciate the people who care for him," Jackson answered in a steady voice.

"Oh, crap. Did I say that out loud?" I asked, embarrassed.

"Yup," Nathan answered.

"Sorry I'm not one yet," Jackson said. "I gotta talk to Eric." He followed Eric's path calmly as my mind reeled. Did he say he wasn't a man?

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As I walked to the tent with Eric, following Nathan and Daley, Eric repeated his earlier thought.

"You've changed."

"How?"

"You're… stronger. More determined to, um, hold on a sec, I know what it's called… you're more determined to make people really see you. And the reason you love Jackson is because he sees you."

"That's what I thought at first," I said sourly.

"And," Eric plunged on and ignored my comment, "because he somehow brings out the parts of you that you've never shown anyone else. I mean, yeah, you're sweet, and heck yeah, you're cheerful, but no one knows how much you really care for people. None of us heard what you told Jackson that night he almost ran away. He did. I don't see you hugging me in the rain and stuff, and you haven't done that for Nathan either, even when he was mad because he couldn't do anything right."

I froze. Was that what it was? I backtracked… I'd told Nathan secrets before, and he'd told me some, too, but he hadn't told me how worthless he'd felt when he couldn't do anything right. And even when I'd known what was going on with him, I still didn't try to make him feel better. Of course I'd cared for him, and if he'd told me what was wrong, then yes, I probably would've comforted him. But then, that would seem out of the ordinary- something that Mel wouldn't do. Yet I hugged Jackson without anything from his part. I ran to him. Why did he confide in me that night? Why did he show how vulnerable he really was to me? How did he know that I would comfort him? What was it that told me exactly what he needed? Was there really a connection, or was I fooling myself again?

"And you know this because…?" I asked him. He suddenly flushed and shifted his gaze away from me.

"Well, I, um, I eavesdropped on you when you filmed that video diary entry that you erased."

"I should've known. I'm on a deserted island with only a few people, and I still have no privacy!"

"Well… was I right about you and Jackson?" Eric asked.

"I don't know," I answered softly. "This change that's happening to me… do you think it's better?"

Eric paused for a moment, and we both stopped walking.

"Think of a caterpillar. Before now, you were willing to be stepped on and ignored and forgotten- a caterpillar," he said, launching into an imitation of our guidance counselor. I grimaced. A caterpillar? Really? Eric continued, "Now, you've sheltered yourself somewhere, and you're becoming stronger. Suddenly, you're more noticeable, and people gawk and take pictures of you in your little cocoon. One day, you pop out like a butterfly, and people call you beautiful. No one steps on you, and you fly high. It's like your own little meta- metamore- um…." his voice returned to normal again as he tried to remember the word.

"Metamorphosis," I supplied.

"Right. Mel's metamorphosis. Catchy," he remarked.

My metamorphosis. It sounded right, and fitted me now. I kept changing from stage to stage- normal, to heartless, to depressed, to numb, to stronger. I was just waiting to pop out. Alright, that sounded corny. I didn't really care, as long as I was strong enough to go through this little truth test thing that Daley had planned. I would be happy if I did survive this ordeal and came out... beautiful. Beautiful. Me? It was possible. Metamorphosis was a miracle of nature, and maybe it would work for me, too.

I hoped it would.

**A/N: OK, so the angst is much less in this chapter. I swear there are little voices that sound like the characters from Flight 29 Down telling me to make Jackson less of a jerk and Taylor nicer and to make Eric funnier... or maybe I'm just losing too much sleep. XD. Please click that beautiful green button down there and review! I love you guys!**


	5. Chapter 5: Truth

**A/N: I'm really, really, REALLY sorry for not uploading as fast as normal... *winces*... Please don't hurt me! In return, I wrote an even longer chapter than normal! In my defense, I have been battling the flu, possibly the swine flu. *Gasp* I wouldn't have gone to school if today hadn't been the last possible day to buy Homecoming Tickets. Yes, I know it's kinda shallow, but I was buying tickets for my best friend, too. So don't be afraid! Friendship conquers all, including the swine flu! In fact, all I have is a bad cough. Don't worry, you won't get virtually infected by reading this! Also, something important to remember: in this chapter, Jackson has already told Mel that she makes him feel secure. Maybe I was just mad that the MelxJackson sweetness of that part had to be left to the end..? In my opinion, that scene should've happened before and they should've kissed at the end! I'm just saying. So, please! Forgive me and read....**

We passed a sullen Lex as he walked towards the tent.

"Hey, Le-"

"Save it. I get it; I'm a little kid to you," he muttered angrily. I stopped him. What the heck did Daley think she was doing?

"No. You're more than that. We need you to survive, but your sister… she's afraid of what you'll think of her," I tried to explain.

"I already know about her and Nathan! She hasn't really tried to hide that," he exploded.

"She still worries about what you'll think. And I know it's frustrating and you just feel alone and pushed aside, but think like this: Daley cares so much about you that she only wants to show you her better side. Is she wrong to do that? Undeniably. But she wants you to only see the good in her and not be ashamed of her. So, can you give her a little break? She's afraid that you'll hate her."

"She's being stupid," he stubbornly insisted, but I could see that he was pondering what I'd said.

"Well, I guess I could cut her some slack. I probably wouldn't stay awake through all your boring teen gossip stuff when I could be making a model of my latest design!" Suddenly perked up, Lex ran purposefully to the tent, forgetting his earlier gloom. I have to admit, I love the kid.

"Nice save," Eric muttered.

"Are you kidding? I wish I hadn't saved it because then I wouldn't have to go to this stupid little truth thing!" I tried to whisper and exclaim at the same time. It didn't really work out.

"What was that, Mel?" Daley called to us, her hands on her hips.

"I just helped Lex feel better! If I hadn't saved the situation, then I wouldn't have gotten to go to your truth thing!" I replied, tweaking the truth a little.

"Oh! Thanks!" Daley brightened.

A lot of people notice how time flies when you're facing something unpleasant. Sure enough, it seemed like it'd only been a second since I'd talked with Lex and already Eric and I were sitting around Daley's makeshift bonfire on the beach.

"OK," Daley said, clapping her hands twice, "this is Bonfire Bonding. We've all noticed that there's… tension in the camp lately, and I figured that it would be a great idea to get everything out into the open!"

Even Taylor was unimpressed.

"See, Daley, this is why you aren't popular!" she exclaimed. Daley didn't wilt- she never did when Taylor insulted her.

"Well, do you want to go to sleep with Lex then?" Daley asked sweetly. Taylor stiffened.

"Jack would come with me, right?" Taylor asked. Jackson looked confused before realizing who she meant. The nickname change must've been recent, then.

"Look, I don't really care about the whole thing, but I don't feel like going to sleep, Taylor. This is better than nothing, I guess," he said tiredly. Why was he so exhausted all the time now?

"OK, then, it's settled. So, one person will have to answer questions from everyone else. Only 2 questions per asker. After that person is asked all questions, the person to the right now has to answer questions. We go until someone falls asleep. You sleep, you have to do everything tomorrow! Every person is allowed 2 passes to keep from answering a question. For every pass used, you have to kiss the person on your right. OK? Just to be nice, you guys can ask me first. Alright, Nathan ask me your first question!" She sounded genuinely excited, but I couldn't help but feel that the game was a bit stupid. First of all, Jackson sat on Taylor's right, and I didn't want to have to see them kiss any more than I already had… and Nathan was on Daley's right. Plus, there was the very embarrassing problem of me sitting on Jackson's right. Taylor sent me a murderous glare before cozying up to Jackson. Would doing chores for a day be so bad? I considered falling asleep. Why would Daley want to be first? What was so great about having to tell the whole truth about something? Maybe she was just trying to look good in front of Nathan; he sat there on her right giving her a smile-

Oh. Ohhhhh.

He was sitting to her right. She wanted to ask him a question, but didn't want to seem to eager.

Wow. Love brings paranoia into an already complicated equation.

"You sure? I could make this really bad for you," Nathan told her playfully.

"Bring it on, McHugh!" she exclaimed, punching his shoulder lightly. Nathan rubbed his shoulders and laughed, but I detected a glint in his eyes. Whatev. I wasn't sick enough to actually want to know what he was going to ask his girlfriend. How was this supposed to reveal everything?

"Are you a virgin?" I heard Nathan ask in the fuzzy part of my mind that was trying to pay attention. I was surprised, but that wasn't enough to get me interested in the game. I didn't look up when I heard Taylor snort and say," Why would anyone have it with her?" I probably never would've looked up if I hadn't realized that Daley was hesitating. That was when I looked up and saw Nathan's eyes narrow, saw Daley's blush creep up her neck and cheeks, and heard Eric let out an "Oooooh…". Taylor was surprised, but it was that evil, calculating look of surprise and I knew she couldn't wait to hear the answer. Even Jackson seemed mildly interested. My attention was fully captured by now. I happened to know the answer -yes- and I wondered why she hesitated.

"Daley. What's wrong with you?" I asked her calmly. "Just say it." Nathan was now trying to subdue his frenzy, and he looked up at me with a wild glance. Love turns people into animals.

"Pass," Daley finally squeaked. She gave him a quick peck on the lips. My eyebrows shot up and I leaned back in surprise. What was so wrong with being a virgin? Nathan slumped, defeated, and I realized with some guilt that I had been neglecting him for a while. Then again, he had neglected me, too.

"Day," I ventured, "what are you doing?" It was a rhetorical question, and Daley shot me a pained look.

"Next question, Nathan," she managed. Nathan ran his hand through his bush of hair.

"Have you lied to me before?" he asked. I felt like tutting. Heartbreak, I am sure, was definitely not part of Daley's plan.

"Yes," she said clearly, surprising me again. This was not looking too good. Was she trying to break up? Nathan did nothing but turn away from her, to Taylor who sat on his right. She rubbed her hands in glee.

"Well," she said happily, "I was going to ask if you and Nathan were a couple, but a better question would be: when will you break up?" Jackson became impassive as if he didn't care about the answer. He did care, though. He was trying not to show it, and I could read it on his face as clearly as I could see Taylor's malice in her seemingly innocent blue eyes.

"We're forever. I don't plan on breaking up with him, and I never will. I still can't answer for Nathan though," Daley seemed to have regained all of her strength now, and she looked Taylor in the eye. Taylor rolled her eyes and tutted.

"Oh, Daley. Sooo naïve," Taylor clucked. "My next question is," she dragged it out, "when was your first kiss? Your first REAL kiss, like with sparks." Daley swallowed before answering.

"Here on the island." Nathan lifted his head up quickly.

"You mean-" he interrupted the game. She laughed at his reaction.

"Yes, you idiot. Now shut up and let us play!" she affectionately pecked him on the cheek. She turned to Taylor then, sporting a look of triumph. "Thank you Taylor for bringing us together again! You fixed our first fight!" she exclaimed mockingly. Taylor sniffed and fluffed her very golden, still perfect hair. Why did she need conditioner again? Daley nodded to Jackson. "Your turn."

"What's your favorite love song?" Jackson asked. I suddenly felt really good that he was the only one with enough honor not to dig deep and get embarrassing answers. Daley seemed to think so, too, because she shot him a grateful smile before answering.

"Lovebug."

"By the Jonas Brothers?" Jackson asked incredulously.

"Yup. Why? Got a problem with it?"

"No, I mean, everyone's allowed to have their own opinions…" he drifted off, still surprised. I smiled. Daley normally did not admit it, but she was a mega Disney Channel fan. She rolled her eyes.

"Next question?"

"Huh? Oh, right. If you wanted to break up with Nathan, what would you do?" he seemed flustered, as if he'd lost all of his cool. Even his impassive facade didn't seem as collected as normal.

"I honestly have no idea," Daley told him. She gave him a strange look, as if something was wrong with him.

Then, it was my turn.

"When we get back, do you and Nathan plan on trying for Homecoming King and Queen next year?" I asked with a grin. It would be senior year, after all.

"Apparently, Nathan hates monarchies," Daley answered seriously, but I detected a little twitch at the corner of her lips.

"OK, then, is there anything you want to take back that happened here?" I asked.

"Jackson's rule on relationships," she answered without a pause. I felt him shift beside me.

After that, Nathan and Daley had their moments, Jackson became increasingly flustered, Eric became increasingly impassive, and Taylor became increasingly flirty.

Taylor tried to pry information from me about whether I kissed Eric or not.

"Pass!" I squeaked before quickly kissing Eric's cheek. We were both blushing.

"No, no, no, Melissa!" Daley said mischievously. "I did it on the lips, you do it on the lips." She didn't even listen to me argue that Nathan was her boyfriend. With a sigh, I turned to Eric.

"Can you turn around?" I asked him meekly. The tips of his ears were a vibrant red. He opened his mouth and shut it, apparently at a loss for words.

"Eric? Eric. Eric!" I groaned. As Daley's eyes twinkled, I put my hand under Eric's chin, cupping it, turned him to face me (and he obliged almost willingly), and closed my eyes so I wouldn't have to watch as my lips met his. Unfortunately, this meant that I couldn't see where my lips landed. I only meant to press my lips against his for a second, nothing fancy or dreamy, obviously. But fate seemed to have decided that I would be better off if my lips landed between his- trapping his bottom lip between mine… just like the beginnings of a real kiss. My eyes flew open in shock and I pulled away after a very long second, looking anywhere but him. My cheeks heated up and I knew I was as red as a tomato.

"Oh, crap," I whispered. "Sorry, Eric."

"Uh-huh," he managed.

I finally looked up just in time to see Daley give Jackson a triumphant glance. When she noticed me, she grinned.

"You're blushing." I turned away from her, and saw Jackson's face. Let's just say that he looked like stone except stones aren't angry.

"That was quite a kiss," he said, his voice surprising me.

"It wouldn't have happened if Daley hadn't been so stubborn," I glared at her.

"So… do you like or love someone on this island?" he asked, and I realized it was his turn.

"Love." I almost swore. What was I thinking? He turned his head and looked at me for a moment, just staring into my eyes.

"Love?" he asked, his voice extremely soft. Did he know? I simply nodded in response, finally looking away. I noticed him shiver slightly and looked up again. He was not angry, or cold, or indifferent, or even flustered. He looked like he had lost something, like he was not completely together. His eyes held a wild undertone now, and I shivered involuntarily.

"No more questions," he said brusquely. I remember Taylor asking Eric if he liked someone… he said yes, and she looked disappointed. She even shrank away from Jackson a bit, and my heart made a little happy leap until I saw his facial expression, still like angry stone.

We went around the circle again, and I realized I had forgotten to "fall asleep." Everything was a blur- I asked my questions, laughed at the right moments, smiled at some, and looked horrified whenever a particularly nasty secret was revealed. That was when Taylor decided she would deliver a harsh blow, in the form of a seemingly innocent question.

"What do you feel like when I do this?" she asked, her lips curling at the corners in a slight sneer. Grabbing Jackson's shirt, she pulled him to her and mashed her lips to his. Even as my stomach plunged and my heart twisted, I saw that Jackson wasn't responding. Taylor was complete mouth and tongue, and Jackson was… angry stone. I was just about to turn away in horror, when I finally saw Jackson push her off angrily.

"Taylor! Get off of me!" he ordered, gritting his teeth. She fell back in shock.

"Wha-?"

"I'm done! You're not who you're supposed to be! I'm sick of the lies and the changing and the misjudgment… I'm sick of the wrong. It's always wrong- saying one thing but meaning another, ignoring the voice in my gut telling me to stop, pretending everything's fine… it's all so wrong. Always wrong. I'm always wrong about everything."

Dead silence met his words, and I realized he was ranting about himself. He seemed to realize his mistake.

"I mean you're always wrong!" he tried.

"Jackson." I surprised myself by speaking. I hadn't actually said his name in forever.

"Melissa."

This time, I didn't look away. This time I was resolved- all or nothing. Either I found out everything or I became nothing. Somehow I knew my metamorphosis had come to an end. It seemed short, but that was only because I had just realized the change.

Taylor rolled her eyes. "We are so done," she said, stalking towards the tent. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Eric throw Jackson a disgusted glance before jogging off after Taylor. Nathan and Daley hurriedly left as quickly as the others. The bonfire was not as bright now, and half of Jackson's face was shrouded in shadow.

"Jackson." I let his name hang in the tense silence between us before continuing. "What happened?"

"I'm wrong about everything, weren't you listening?" he asked, his voice tense.

"No. Why did you lose it? I want to hear why you're not as calm or impassive, not hear what you already said." Jackson had never been so scared or seemed so lost as that one night in the rain when he almost ran away. But this was a different kind of lost- a different kind of vulnerability.

He was silent, and he stayed that way for a long time. The tiny spark of curiosity gradually built into an overwhelming need to know where the Jackson I knew had gone; but I didn't miss the coldness at all. In fact, I wouldn't have wanted to know why he wasn't so cold but was more heated and angry if I wasn't afraid that he might've been losing something, too.

"Jackson, please. It's like you're losing yourself and you're drifting off. You're never this flustered. What happened?"

"I've always been wrong," he said jerkily. "I was wrong when I told those guys about the trip, I was wrong to hang out with them, I was wrong to think that maybe my life was turning around, and I was wrong to come here. I was wrong to choose Taylor. I've always been wrong. Nothing new here."

"But you never cared until now," I said.

"I did!" he fired back. "I did," he repeated, trying to calm down. "I knew I was wrong before I came here. I was afraid. I came here because I wanted to escape-"

"Before you came here. But while you were here, after we found out… you weren't wrong."

"Well, yeah. And then I became wrong again."

"What happened between then and now?" I asked softly. He was silent again, but I waited. It seemed like an eternity until he finally turned and looked me in the eyes. I could see it there in his eyes, the fear and uncertainty. I almost saw the answer. He finally spoke.

"I lost my security," he whispered.

My mind reeled, the memories within forcefully shoving themselves to the surface, forcing me to remember.

The day he told me how he felt- "You make me… secure." I'd felt so happy that day, so vibrant.

Even though it was nothing but a memory, the images were vivid in my mind, and I almost could feel within my chest the memory of a heart…

He lost me. That had changed everything.

"I lost my security," he repeated, and my heart twisted as I gave him the answer he'd been waiting for.

"Or maybe… you gave her away."

I looked at him, simply gazing, for one more second before he pulled me into a hug as he finally broke.

"I'm sorry… so sorry… I was afraid… I'm sorry," his voice was slightly above a whisper, and I heard his voice break.

"I'm sorry, too," I whispered back, holding him tightly.

"It's alright now," I comforted him softly. He wasn't crying like before, but I knew he still needed comfort.

"I told you. I'll be here for you. Always."

**A/N: OK, let the tomato throwing begin... (*hides behind Flight 29 Down poster*)... like I said, I've been really sick. I promise, Jackson and Melissa will kiss. And, Taylor lovers, I promise Taylor isn't a complete witch. Just wait. Hopefully, I'll be able to upload faster. Alright, if you're really mad at me or if you're super happy, please just click the Review button! I love you guys, even if you hate me right now. :)**


	6. Chapter 6: Wait

**A/N: I am so so sooo sorry! Really. I don't have an excuse, except for high school. Sorry, I didn't mean to take so much time updating. Anyway, this chapter is dedicated to jelissalover because she helped me remember that Mel does in fact have a backbone! *gasp* I reread the last chapter, and... wow... that was way too fast. So, I'm sorry for that, too. To all of my readers, thank you so much for reading! Everytime I log in, I check my story traffic and... wow... 45 hits! And to all my reviewers, thank you thank you thank you! I love you guys! Please review more, because whenever I read them, I start to glow like Mel does when she... well, you'll see. *cackles* Anyway, I'm going to stop now so you can read. I hope it meets your expectations. Read and review!**

I went to bed with mixed feelings that night. I don't know, maybe Daley was rubbing off on me, but I really didn't want to just forgive him on the spot. That was something quiet Mel would do. That was something the girl who just wanted everyone to be happy would do. Of course, happiness wasn't a bad thing. But I didn't want to just be making everyone else happy. Hey, I deserved as much happiness as the next girl.

But I didn't want people to think they could just break my heart- smash it, tear it, rip it out, trash it… _breathe, Mel, breathe_- and I would automatically forgive them the second they used a really sweet line- a really heartwarming line, one that brought back memories, a serious line, one that seemed sincere and honest and heartfelt and _loving_… _focus, Mel!_ And a hug shouldn't bring me back either! Not even a hug given by a guy with incredibly muscular arms- unbelievably strong, especially when tensed and-

Oh crap. I sounded like the boy-crazy head cheerleader, Taylor herself. Hmm, from depressed emo girl to boy-crazy cheerleader? Obviously, scientists don't know how twisted the female adolescent's rollercoaster of emotions really is.

The bottom line was that it should not have been that easy for Jackson to get me to admit that I forgave him. I wasn't some slut who hung around every guy who would have me; I had self respect and I wasn't going to lose over some guy who happened to have a strange sort of connection with me. With that in mind, I fell into a restless sleep.

_jmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjm_

I padded out of the tent after everyone else that morning and wiped the sleep from my eyes. Eric was out with Taylor, hunched suspiciously over something. I watched in amusement as Eric whispered something excitedly in Taylor's ear and she giggled before pecking him on the cheek.

"Hey."

How did Jackson manage to walk so quietly? I heard him come up from behind me and turned to give him a half smile. Half. Well, I couldn't give him a full smile with mixed emotions. He'd see right through it. So, as practical me turned, calculating like a geek just how wide my smile should be, he slung his arm around my waist and leaned close. Like most corny moments, his movements seemed to take an eternity as my body fought between stiffening and leaning into him. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw his head turn to lean to me, adding even more to the panic, and it was chaos-_chaos!_- flowing like electricity through my veins, pumping to my heart, freezing me, melting me-

_I am not weak._ My mind cleared completely, and I spun away from him.

"Wha-?" he gave me a completely bewildered look, and I instantly blanked out.

"Umm…" I searched for an explanation. _Shoot_. This mental pep talk thing was going to take a lot of work. What had I been thinking when I turned away from him? I frowned in concentration.

"Mel? You ok-"

I cut him off.

"Sorry, Jackson, but I'm not a pushover. It's going to take a whole lot more than last night."

"You said you'd be there for me." His look of concern was quickly morphing into disbelief and anger. _Whoops. Wrong words, Mel_. I backtracked and took a breath to calm myself.

"I said I'd be there for you. I didn't say I'd be your next Taylor," I managed to reply coolly. I felt like handing myself an Oscar.

Jackson ran his hand through his hair. I looked away, not trusting myself. I may have found some sort of… something, a balance maybe, but it still didn't help the raging hormones. The last thing I wanted was to jump into his arms and kiss him right there… even though that happened to be the very first thing I wanted to do. _Down, Mel._

"Fine," he conceded. "You're right." I pursed my lips together and nodded like a bobble head, suddenly unaware of what to do next. Can we say insecure?

"Yup. I mean, I'm not saying that I'm right all the time! I get wrong sometimes! Like the time when I told Abby that there was no way Nathan and Taylor would go out. Or the time that I thought Eric was joking when he asked me to the Winter Dance-" I noticed Jackson's eyes darken. I'm afraid I may have gasped. His eyes looked so much different now, so much stranger, so much deeper… so much hotter. His gaze made me feel strangely warm near my midsection, and the new feeling made me uncomfortable… which, of course, made me ramble even _more._ Of course. Because this is me we're talking about here, not Taylor the Perfect Princess.

"-And there was the time that I thought you'd never come on the trip, only thank God I wasn't right that time, because that would have been a disaster for m- us, and I was also wrong when I thought you'd be with Taylor forever and there was no way you'd ever leave her because she was so beautiful and I was no where near-" I froze. _Oh, no_. I could've died right then and there. _Stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid!_ _Idiot!_ I raged. _What were you thinking?_

I felt fingers toying with a strand of my hair and I looked up. Jackson stared at the piece of hair in his hands with piercing concentration while I stared embarrassingly enough at him staring at my hair. Suddenly, he dropped the hair, and I felt a sense of loss, almost as if even my hair was longing for his touch.

"I was right," he announced, "your hair is softer than hers." He turned around and walked away.

I stared at him, dumbfounded. What do you say to something like that?

There was no doubt who he meant when he said "hers."

I touched the hair he'd touched. Softer than Taylor I-need-my-conditioner-or-my-hair-will-look-disgusting Hagan? I stroked it absently. Really?

_jmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjm_

That night at the campfire as I sat next to Nathan, I stroked that piece of hair yet again before taking a bite of fish. Looking up mid-chew, I caught Jackson's eye. He raised an eyebrow, nodding towards the way my finger repeatedly twirled and twisted that same piece of hair, over and over. My eyes widened in embarrassment.

He grinned.

_jmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjmjm_

It was all so wrong. It was all so right. I knew that the others considered me naïve, but I knew enough to realize that whichever viewpoint I chose could change everything. If I considered everything that had happened wrong, then after that one moment of choice, whatever would unfold would be because of me. If I chose to believe that everything that happened was right, and oh, so perfect, then whatever happened afterwards would be because of me as well, unless anyone else chose to interfere.

That much I knew to be true. That much I clung to for sanity.

I just didn't know what I wanted anymore. I had changed, yes. I had changed because I knew now that I did have a say. I knew now that Taylor didn't have to run everything. I knew now that what I felt did matter in the grand scheme. I knew that I wasn't invisible; I was something. No, I was someone.

Jackson was strange to me. Jackson had a strange connection with me, and I didn't know if it was good or not. That little connection had brought me so much pain in the past weeks that a part of me just wanted to throw it away forever. But that little connection had also filled me with butterflies- a not entirely uncomfortable feeling- and elation. I loved those feelings. I loved what he did to me, even if I didn't want to admit it.

But I also had changed because I'd decided not to pine after him in a closet, wishing for something. I didn't want to throw myself at him. If Eric was right, if my feelings were true, then there really was a true connection, or bond between us. But if it was just a one-sided emotion… I wasn't going to throw myself away for that. It had to be real. We had to be real. We had to be something that I could trust in.

And until I knew that for sure, we were just going to have to wait.

**A/N: How do you wipe the sleep from your eyes? I've tried, but it's still hard to stay awake in Geometry. Alright, then, beautiful readers (or handsome, you know, if you're a guy), please review. Please! Please?**


	7. Chapter 7: Music

**A/N: Hello again! I'm sooo sorry it took so long but I had a slight change of plans with this chapter. Plus, you know, Thanksgiving. ANYWAY. I just couldn't wait like Mel. Thank you so much for reading, and thanks to my reviewers. Love ya! *virtual hug* Happy late Thanksgiving! This chapter is just a tad more mature, nothing you can't handle. It's in the conversation... yeah. :) Also, there's a paragraph or two about Shakespeare somewhere in here... Lex is a genius. Anyway, read on! And thanks for favoriting and putting this on story alert. *eyes water* *sniffle* I LOVE YOU! I realize I haven't written a disclaimer in a while, and I realize that some of you may believe that I actually own this show. So, here's your douse of reality (and mine!).**

**Disclaimer:_ Yes, I own Flight 29 Down. There's a Season 3 coming out that involves Jackson and Melissa and one very long awaited kiss... *bursts into tears* I WISH!_**

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A person can't hide forever (but if I could have, I definitely would've). I was pretty sure I knew why some guys hated talking about feelings. It was just too embarrassing. And personal. And there was a risk to take. But I also knew why lots of girls needed to talk about their feelings. It stopped the terrible hiding and uncertainty and insecurity. And we all know that I've got enough of that already.

I tried hiding from Jackson, and it wasn't working. I'd see him and start talking to Nathan. OK, yes, I knew we had to wait at least until after we were rescued. But the truth was that I didn't want to wait. There was a huge part of me that wanted to jump into Jackson's arms and ask him to take me away to a faraway castle… ok, embarrassing! Either way, I had to restrain myself. It didn't help that it was _that time of the month_ again. Just my luck.

I wanted us to be in a gray area, a place where we could go on pretending like everything was normal (Normal? What's that?). I almost pulled it off, too. It was so gloomy though, and neither of us made a move, just the occasional "Hey," to slice the gloom with one ray of light. Just as quickly as the light came, it would dim and fade and we would settle. Why would I want something as depressing as this? Because it was comfortable. Because there was no pressure. Because outside of the gray was color.

The color of Jackson's eyes: just the right shade of blue that I loved. His eyes weren't hypnotizing (good thing or I'd be even more of an idiot), but they had a blend of warmth and comfort… sort of like a mix of all of who he was in one color. Blue. And to think that once upon a time I loved purple...

Then there was the color I saw whenever I remembered what he'd done with Taylor. Red.

The gray was very, very comfortable. There were no awkward silences, just silences. But I just wasn't made for gray. No one is, you know? We want to be, just so we don't have to face our fears or face anything else that might be hard. We want to have a shell to turn into and sleep the problems away. But we need to learn- I needed to learn- that humans don't come with shells for a reason. We can see colors for a reason. Nothing else fits.

I waited, like I promised myself. I ignored the confusion on Jackson's face whenever he saw me, knowing that I hadn't told him about my decision.

I waited.

But I didn't want to.

Geez. Bipolar doesn't even scratch the surface...

"Jackson, I gotta tell you something," I said when I finally came to my senses. Carpae dium, Mel. I normally was never completely sane for too long, and I needed to seize the moment. And yes. I knew I was kinda, sorta, possibly… bipolar.

…

Alright. Very bipolar.

I cleared my throat, hoping to God that my voice wouldn't squeak.

"Um.. You know that morning when you were about to," I coughed again,"… kiss me?" Aw, crap. I squeaked. On the word kiss. He noticed, too, although he tried not to show it. I saw it in the way he tilted his head just to the side.

He interrupted. (Thank God.)

"Mel, look, I understand that you might not really like me right now, and maybe it's just me who thinks that you…" he drifted off, suddenly looking uncomfortable. "Lemme start over. I don't want to push you into something you don't want to be in." My eyes narrowed.

"Like…?"

"Like… a relationship. With me." He ran his hands through his hair, looking worriedly at me when I sighed.

"Oh, Jackson… you just… you can't- you-" I groaned. "You can't just- you're not supposed to- no, you can't!" Jackson, being a guy, and having lived with three girls for a while now, came up with the most logical answer possible.

He rubbed the back of his head.

And I snapped. Naturally.

"You can't just shove your tongue down Taylor's throat one week and then ask me out in the next!" I exploded, pacing back and forth, feeling his eyes follow me. "That's completely wrong! That's insensitive! I need time! And don't even say that you didn't kiss her, 'cause I saw you! I saw all the tongue action! And I just… no! You can't!"

He looked offended.

"WHAT?" I exclaimed when I saw his face.

"Are you saying I'm a bad kisser?"

I stared at him, dumbfounded. "What?"

"Because," he continued, "I don't 'shove my tongue' down a girl's throat. That's just messy."

I slumped against a tree, exhausted and horrified. I almost worked myself back into a rage… until I saw the teasing glint in his eyes. Finally, I relaxed.

"I swear," I mumbled, "if we don't get saved, I'll go off the deep end and never come back."

He settled down beside me, stretching out his legs beside mine until we sat side by side, our bodies touching.

"That's a load of crap. You're our glue," he said, his eyes closed. I felt a little of my anger ebb away when I saw him so peaceful. Had I ever seen him this way before? _Focus, Mel_. What kind of girl yells at someone and then has major crush syndrome on the same guy? Oh, _right. Me_.

"Sometimes, even the glue dries up. And then what?" I muttered. He was silent for a moment.

"The glue shouldn't be spread too thin…" he tried.

"I already am drying up, you know. I've been neglecting Nathan, and Daley… and Lex. Oh, no, Lex!" I started to get to my feet, when I felt his hand clamp around my arm and bring me back. I turned to him in confusion, but he held my gaze before breaking the silence.

"Why do you care so much?" When I didn't answer, he plowed on. "I can see that you care for Nathan, since he's your best friend. And maybe you care for Lex 'cause he's like a little brother. But Eric? Hasn't he taken advantage of you the whole time? And why do you care for Daley? I know you're friends… but she still used to get on your nerves. And… why do you care for me? What did I do?"

"I care for Eric because… he really isn't that bad once you get past his shallow outside. He's a great guy… except for when he's around Taylor. Lots of guys seem to have that effect around her…" I hinted oh-not-so-subtly. "Daley isn't that annoying once you get past her bossiness. And you? You're yourself. At first you were intimidating, but then we realized that you really are good and not the delinquent Nathan thought you were." Jackson ran his hand through his hair again, but slower, as if he were thinking about what I said.

"So you care also because you see who we are once you get past the obvious bad side of us?" he asked. I nodded, and he continued. "So, why can't you see Taylor's good side?" I stood up abruptly and dusted off my shorts.

"OK, discussion over." But I still turned around and faced him, hands on my hips. We stared at each other unblinkingly. I was firm. I was going to win this match if it killed me. I wouldn't blink. Not even when my eyes watered. Not even when I saw how calmly he looked back at me. Not even when I noticed the names carved into the tree he sat against: Melissa and Jackson. In a heart.

I blinked.

"Ummm… who did that?" I asked him. He tilted his head back, saw it, and met my gaze again.

"The one with a knife," he answered calmly.

"Oh. I don't have a knife," I processed slowly. I turned around and sat next to him again in a daze.

"Right. I do," he said helpfully.

"Uh-huh."

"Mel."

"Uh-huh?"

"I did it." He said every word carefully and clearly, like he was talking to a little child.

"Uh-hu- Right! Right, you did. Because I didn't. I don't have a knife. You do. So you did it."

He paused for a moment before patting my knee. "Yes. I did."

"Jackson?"

"Yeah?"

"Why?"

"Why not?"

I seriously think that I would've kissed him. But being rescued with a broken heart was not the way I wanted to see my parents again.

"Taylor," I fumbled for an excuse.

"-is over. We're over. We never were."

I stopped and silently cursed myself for my stupidity. Right, like I'd actually let myself get swept off by lies. I hated myself for trembling when I finally answered. I inhaled sharply.

"Don't lie to me, Jackson. Don't ever lie to me."

"I'm not," he said. I was suddenly very much aware of how his hand was still on my knee. Now his other hand tugged on my hand to turn me around. I didn't- wouldn't- look at him… except for one quick glance to see the pleading look on his face.

"Look, it's bad enough that I had to see you with Taylor. And then it got worse that time you and Taylor accidentally walked into us after some 'alone time' with each other. I know what you were doing! And then you lie about it to me?" I took a shuddering breath. "And while you were with her you wouldn't look at me. And when she was away, you'd come to me. Do you know how that feels? No, don't answer that; I don't need you to lie to me even if you think so! I don't need you to make me feel so weird and confused! I don't want to have to spend hours and hours trying to figure out why I just can't hate you forever until I die. So just stop!" I nearly burst into tears right there. In fact I was getting up to go run in the forest to do just that when he awkwardly pulled me into some sort of bear hug. I practically choked him by hugging his neck too tight.

My face was in his neck, but I wasn't crying. Not yet, anyway. His hands wrapped hesitantly around my waist and rubbed my back. He was so close. Almost too close, but I wasn't worried. This wasn't Eric. This was Jackson, and if I kissed him I wouldn't be so confused. I heard his whisper in my ear and felt his warm breath in my hair and on my neck when he spoke.

"I would never lie to you."

I actually believed him.

"Convince me." I was such a liar…

"First of all, we weren't having… you know, the thing you thought we were having. Proof? I'm not going to make a girl pregnant while she's stranded on a deserted island. I'm not going to ruin someone's life. Secondly, even though she talked about it, Taylor wanted her first time to be absolutely perfect… something about getting her hair done and buying some laundry." I pulled back to stare at him.

"Lingerie?" I asked, trying to stifle a laugh.

"Maybe," he said slowly. I clambered off of him with a laugh.

"'kay, I believe you, but only because you have to be telling the truth if you weren't paying attention to her when she was talking about lingerie."

"Hey!" he protested.

"What?" I asked.

"I wasn't done convincing you," he said, his cool composure back in place.

"Don't worry about it," I said, waving him off with one hand. "But thanks for the hug."

"About that…" he pulled me to him again without any hesitation and… oh, sweet, holy heaven.

He kissed me.

Unlike his composure, his lips were warm and inviting, and they never stopped moving. And if music had a taste… well, I was tasting it. My eyes fluttered shut, only to open them again when I felt cold air brush my mouth. What the heck?

"Why are you pulling away?" I asked grumpily before grabbing his T-shirt and pulling him to me again. He pulled me flush against him before rolling over so that I was on the ground. Forget hormones, this was heaven! He deepened the kiss and I tried to pull him even closer to me. No space was too much space.

Softly, his fingers grazed up my hip and rested there. I didn't flinch- it was like he was supposed to be there. And finally, I felt his lips drag to my chin-

Someone coughed.

It took a moment for us to register it and pull away to a slightly more respectable position, even though his arm went around my waist protectively. I smiled nervously before looking up to see Lex.

"Was I interrupting something- again?" he asked in an almost exasperated tone.

"Again?" I asked, confused. "This is our first-"

"I interrupted Nathan and Daley and Taylor with Eric," he sighed. "Teens and their stupid hormones," he muttered.

"Um… sorry?" I asked. He looked up quickly.

"No! No sorry, it's fine. Really, it was about time people dated the right people. I was gonna go crazy with all the heartbreak. Eric sounded like Hamlet! No, I'm not mad. It's just… _annoying_."

"Hamlet?" Jackson asked.

Lex nodded and responded automatically. "It's a Shakespearean play about a depressed Danish prince named Hamlet whose dead father comes back as a ghost to tell his son to kill his murderer. The late king was murdered by his brother, who's just taken the throne and his brother's wife as his own. Hamlet's in love with Ophelia, who feels the same, but her father, a royal advisor, forbids her to see the prince because she's too common. Eventually, after a few chilling encounters with her forbidden love who believes she has forgotten him, she goes mad and drowns."

Jackson coughed and Lex continued.

"The new king realizes that Hamlet is trying to murder him. He tries and fails to kill Hamlet. By accident, Hamlet also kills Ophelia's father. The king decides to tell Ophelia's brother about this and tells him to challenge Hamlet to a fencing match. He promises to make sure that the tip of the brother's foil is sharp and poisoned while Hamlet's foil is blunt. For good measure, the king also decides to offer a glass of poisoned wine to Hamlet. In the end, Hamlet gets cut by the foil, switches foils with the brother, cuts the brother, and stabs the king with it when he finds out that it's poisoned. The queen drinks half of the wine and dies, and Hamlet pours the rest of the wine down his uncle's throat. Both he and Ophelia's brother apologize to each other and die. Then the kingdom is invaded and conquered by another prince." He rattled the piece off as if he had memorized it.

"Oh. Right, sounds like Eric…" Jackson managed.

"You read Shakespeare, too?" I asked in awe. Lex nodded.

"Yeah. How else was I supposed to help Daley with English this year?" he asked. I raised my eyebrows.

"You had to help her? That would explain the A+…"

Jackson shifted beside me, and I was pleasantly reminded of his arm around me.

Lex nodded.

"Anyway," he said, "are you going to be here often? I need to map all of your favorite spots so I don't bump into you again."

"Aw, Lex, that's so thoughtful of you!"

"Actually, no. It's just gross."

Jackson grinned. "Yeah, we like this tree."

"Good. Let me know if you find a new spot," Lex answered while walking away, "… please."

I turned back to Jackson with a sigh. "Awkward!" I said with a laugh. I put my arms around his neck again, but he stopped me with a hand on my hip. I tilted my head.

"What?"

"You have to promise to talk to Taylor tomorrow," he said firmly.

"I- what?" My jaw dropped. "Jackson, you want me to talk to Taylor? Why?"

"You two should get along; she's not that bad once you get to know her."

"Yes, I'm sure you knew her very well!" I spat before turning away. How could he? "You must really like her for who she is… or what she does!"

"No, Mel. If I liked her more would I do this?" He kissed me chastely, but enough for me to calm down.

"Would I do that?" he whispered, his face barely an inch from mine.

Stubborn silence.

"Well, if you can like everyone else even though they have bad points, you should at least try to like her. It's fair," he reasoned.

"Because it was fair for her to have you even though I'd like you first. Yeah, right. Nice try, Jackson."

"Please? For me?" he pleaded, running his fingers through my hair. "If she's mad or anything I'll make it up to you."

I sighed. "Fine."

He smirked slightly at his success.

"Are you… ARE YOU SMIRKING?" I asked in outrage.

"Maybe. I wonder what else I can do with a kiss…" he trailed off, pretending to be in deep thought.

"Shut up, Jackson."

"You shut up. You'll wake up the dead if you keep yelling," he answered calmly.

"I am not yelling!"

"Yes, you are. Shut up," he said playfully.

"Make me." I stuck out my tongue.

"With pleasure."

And with that, he leaned in…

Mmmm… _music..._

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**A/N: I would love to taste music... anyway, no, the story isn't over yet. :D Hopefully I'll update sooner. Thanks to Dally2- you really pay attention! :) Please read and review. I'm not forcing you to review, but each time I get a review I feel more compelled to update sooner (hint hint!) even though it won't hurt you if you don't review. Either way, the button is calling you. "_Click me!"_ You should probably listen to it. ;) Until next time!**


	8. Chapter 8: Truce

**Author's Note: So, hey. Sorry for the long update! This chapter is dedicated to RandomnessSmiles because of the story alert and the persistent review! Really, thanks a lot for that. It made me feel so special. :D Well, here's your Christmas present! It's 2:30 AM on Christmas Eve and I.. can't type much more cuz I'm leaving in a few hours to travel. I should probably sleep more, but I was typing late into the night to give you the longest chapter yet. I mean, I had no idea it would turn out this long! So, Merry Christmas (or Happy Holidays, if you prefer) and let me sleep! I'm kidding- I love you guys anyway. **

**Disclaimer: Well, I think it's pretty obvious.**

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I woke up next to Jackson to the sound of his voice whispering in my ear.

"Mel…" he said sleepily in the tent.

"Mmhmm?"

"Shut up, I need to sleep," Eric moaned before rolling over. I heard a thump through my sleepy daze.

"Ah! Eric, watch your leg!" Nathan exclaimed.

"Watch your face," Eric retorted sleepily.

"You're the one who can't keep his legs to himself."

The silence was awkward- but, oh! so sweet- before Eric broke it.

"That was so wrong, dude."

"Why do you have to think so negative?" I heard another thump and Eric swore.

"Now look who can't keep his _hands_ to himself!" he exclaimed.

"Eric? Can you get your hat off of my face?" Lex's voice was slightly muffled.

"We should've woken Mel and Jackson. I should've never let Lex sleep in the middle of you all," Daley muttered.

"Da-ley! I'm fine!"

There was no response from her, and I realized she had fallen asleep again. Lex seemed to realize it, too. Jackson turned over to check on him before mouthing, "He's asleep" to me. We waited until we were sure everyone was asleep again. He grinned before leaning in to whisper into my ear.

"Mel, I- "

"Eric. Look, we can be reasonable about this. Either you tie your legs together, or sleep outside with this blanket," Nathan said, attempting to be civil. As usual, it wasn't working.

"Uh, I don't think so."

I groaned inwardly.

"You don't think, period," Nathan retorted.

"Whoa whoa whoa, hold on a minute. Chill, Nathan. I'm not the one who's so low he has to insult people."

If Nathan could splutter half-awake, he would have. Eric took advantage of his silence and adopted a Dr. Phil tone.

"Now, Nathan. Why don't you calm down and tell me: Do you insult people because you're insecure about your looks?"

"My looks?"

"Don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about, Nathan. Truth is the first step to healing."

"Insecure? Me? You're the one who hides behind that stupid hat all the time," Nathan retorted angrily.

"Your denial is making this more painful than it needs to be. And I don't hide; it's a fashion statement! When we get rescued, this hat will be the style, baby."

Nathan snorted. "'Fashion statement'?"

"At least it stays on my normal hair! It probably couldn't stay on your bird's nest-thing." I could hear the smirk in Eric's voice and sighed.

"Did you just insult my hair? You are such a girl!"

"Can you two shut up? Some of us actually want to sleep!" I heard Taylor's voice from somewhere on the other side of me. The boys subdued, and I sighed in relief.

OK, so maybe Taylor could be useful. But I still hated her.

* * *

Jackson, after realizing that talking to me in the tent was probably not the best idea, dragged me outside.

"This had better be good. You know I hate getting up this early!" I complained.

"Early?" he asked incredulously. "The sun's almost halfway in the sky! It's practically noon."

"I don't care. We went to bed late last night," I said stubbornly. Jackson's face formed the beginning of his smirk. "All of us did," I added hurriedly.

Look. We didn't _do_ anything last night, you hear? Sure, there may have been some lip action, and there's a possibility that maybe hands were moving a little more intimately than a handshake… and, ok, so maybe there were words… but we didn't do _anything_! Got it? OK, good. Proceed.

"Mel. You're whining."

"Well, yes, that tends to happen when I realize that even after all this time, Nathan still can't get over himself." I rubbed my eyes tiredly.

Jackson stayed silent. I hate it when he's right. I bit my lip before sighing.

"Oh, all right. Sorry for being a bi-"

Jackson swooped down- randomly, I might add- and swallowed my words with a kiss.

So, of course, I was going to say something sweet to make the moment more romantic, like, "You should do that more often," or, "Maybe I should whine more often," or something super corny that involved a glorious sunset, but someone cut me off. Let's face it. Corny romantic moments coupled with sunsets just don't happen anymore.

"Shut. Up," Taylor said from behind me. It's probably important to let you know that Jackson was still kissing me. _Mmmmmm_… oh, sorry.

"Um," Jackson looked up suddenly, his hands gripping my arms tighter than what was strictly necessary.

Taylor stood before us, hands on her hips, her foot tapping as if demanding an explanation for… well, I really didn't know what for, but what really matters was that she was demanding.

"You're together?" she exclaimed in horror.

"Well, geez, you don't need to be so surprised." I could afford to be gracious every once in a while.

"Yes I do! One minute you're totally into me and the next you're eating her face off?"

Jackson wore his universal WTH expression.

"What are you talking about? Did you not notice that we were sleeping to- I mean next to each other? Or that Lex had a map of all of the couples and their favorite kiss spots? Did you really think that Jackson was so hung up on you he couldn't think of anyone else? Really, Taylor?"

She met my eyes with an even stare, one eyebrow quirked up as if she was amused. "I was so sure that Jackson of all people wouldn't go to you for cold comfort."

"Cold comfort?" I barely managed to say the words because of my anger. She only smiled.

If she would only stop smiling that stupid, superior smile that made me want to cower, I would've said something heroic. Instead, for the first 10 seconds, I just leaned into Jackson for support. But I wasn't the one to defend myself. My silent knight was the one to (finally) speak up.

"Taylor, you're better than that. You know I'd never do something like that, don't you?" his voice had an almost pleading tone to it. I saw the flicker of regret and uncertainty pass over her face. I saw the way she reacted when he spoke to her like he used to. I'd forgotten that time. I'd forgotten that, once, she was mature and actually cared a little. Maybe I'd forgotten because in one heartbeat she'd reverted to her old self.

"I- Melissa, I…" she trailed off helplessly. I got it, though. For the first time, I'd remembered who she used to be, and I wanted to give that person a chance.

"Jackson, can you leave us alone for a minute?" I asked him after taking a breath. He squeezed my arm reassuringly before walking away.

It was like a scene in some sort of corny movie. Taylor and I even sat on a log, but we kept more than a foot's distance between us.

Taylor stared straight ahead, her blonde hair up in a messy side ponytail. She seemed to fit in everywhere she was, no matter what she wore. She fit in at Daley's sixth birthday party in a pink, sparkly dress complete with a tiara that far surpassed the glory of Daley's T-shirt and jeans. Even then, no one dared to make fun of her or act like something was wrong. But now, here on this log, she seemed ill at ease. It was like she was afraid of me, but I felt the same way about her.

"You're not over him," I surprised myself by saying. She looked startled for a moment before regaining her composure.

"I was never into him," she scoffed with a toss of her head.

"I kinda miss you," I mused thoughtfully. What was I saying? She was my rival, not my old best friend! Well, not anymore, anyway. Not since Daley's sixth birthday party. That was when… well, you know, every diva starts to be snobby at one point. For Taylor, it was at one of her friend's birthday party.

"Miss me?" Taylor asked with a dismissive, but forced laugh. She paused. "I thought you hated me."

"Hate," I corrected, trying to return to my normal, sane, Taylor-hating self. She licked her lips uncertainly and reached up to unsuccessfully smooth her hair.

"Oh."

That one syllable made me feel so horrible, like I'd been too harsh or something. But what had I done? I asked myself. She's the one who went after Jackson even when she knew I liked him. She's the one who changed into a diva! She's the one who became her old self and made me hope a little before turning back to the brat I had hated for the past few weeks. I mean, sure, I was mad that she had changed and attracted Jackson, but I'd hoped that she'd at least stay different for a long time. Island life is a disappointment, if you haven't realized yet.

"Well," I tried to amend, "I don't actually hate you; I just don't like you very much. I mean, I can tolerate you! No, wait, wrong word. I don't dislike you that much- "

"Shut up, Melissa. I get it." She resumed staring emotionlessly ahead.

"It's Mel," I said without thinking. She smoothed her hair again and bit her lip, but didn't respond. "Taylor?" I asked hesitantly. She swallowed visibly before turning to me and managing a tentative smile.

"It's Tay."

"That was a long time ago," I answered after another awkward pause, looking away from her. I saw her nod from the corner of my eye.

"I know."

It was my turn to swallow uncomfortably.

"Mellie and Tay-tay," I murmured to myself. She sniffed.

"Like you said, a long time ago," she said with a tone of finality as she turned away. I bit my lip, wanting to say the words. My will won.

"Not that long ago," I tried. Taylor turned to me again, her eyes flashing.

"Will you make up your mind? Either you hate me or you don't!" she exclaimed angrily.

"I'm trying! You make up your mind- either we make up or we hate each other for the rest of our lives!" I answered just as angrily.

"Maybe I wish things were back to the way they were before that stupid birthday party!"

"Maybe I do, too! Did you think about that? No, you probably only care about that stupid, ruffled, pink, sparkly gown thing you wore to that party!"

"They made me wear that!"

There was a long pause as we stared at each other, unwilling to break the silence her words had caused. Finally, I spoke.

"Whose 'they'?" I asked in a tone that I hoped was gentle. Taylor's bottom lip quivered before she masked it with her defiant façade,

"My parents. They wanted to prepare me for the social life at a very young age." She sniffed delicately. "They wanted me to know the finer things in life. And the value of them," she emphasized. "You never did apologize," she added. I sighed.

"Taylor, I definitely sent you a 'I'm sorry' card, had my parents call yours, and gave you money to pay for the dress! I even tried to wash the tomato sauce out!"

Yes. We started to hate each other when I accidentally spilled my spaghetti on her dress. Daley stood up for me, but Nathan just watched. That was probably why Taylor had no problem dating Nathan.

"You still never said sorry to my face," she said stubbornly, refusing to look at me.

"I'm… sorry?"

"Are you sure? 'Cause you don't sound too sure." Geez, she was so particular!

"I'm positive. I'm sorry."

"For?" she persisted.

"For… spilling my spaghetti on accident on your dress." I rolled my eyes.

"And?"

"What else is there?"

"I don't know; I thought you did."

"Taylor!"

"It's Tay," she giggled childishly. For a moment, we were like we once were: two giggling little girls with nothing to care about in the world. Then we remembered again, and the world- our world- crashed down on us once more. Taylor swallowed again, nervously smoothing out her khaki shorts and straightening her shirt.

"Why did you…" I trailed off, trying to find the right word.

"Get like this? Like the way I am now?" When I didn't respond, she continued bitterly. "How did Daley say it once? 'A spoiled, selfish brat who's never worked a day in her life!' or something like that. You wanna know why I became that? You've got a problem with who I am now?"

I took a breath. "Well, I just… I miss the way things used to be, you know? There was no rich or poor or anything. We were just friends. I miss the way you used to listen to people- like really listen to what people had to say. I miss the way you never gave a crap about how messy your dress was after we played. And now- and now- I thought you were back for once. I came close to halfway forgiving you for stealing Jackson except you changed again in one night. What happened to you, huh?" I asked her in frustration.

"People stopped seeing me." I drew back from her.

"I ask you all of that and you barely have any answer? I should've known this would never work."

"No! Just... listen to me, okay? When I was five, parents started telling their kids that I was a very rich girl who lived in a huge house. And all of those kids all came to be my friends so they could get cool gifts and stuff."

"I wasn't one of those- " I began to protest.

"No, you weren't. Thank God or else I would've started cut- um… culinary arts or something," she interrupted evasively.

"Cooking?" I asked skeptically.

"No, cu- culinary arts!"

"That's cooking, Taylor."

"I knew that," she said, fluffing her hair. "I just wanted to make it sound better."

"Sure."

"Now, before I was rudely interrupted, I was talking about those manipulative brats who only were my friends so they could get stupid gold tiaras and diamond rings," Taylor continued in disgust.

"Wow, that is pretty screwed up," I said, trying to sympathize with the plight of the rich. Don't get me wrong; I did feel bad for her. But not all of us were quite as privileged as Taylor Hagan.

"Well, yeah! I mean, why would you go through all of that trouble for only a solid gold tiara? They didn't just use me; they used me for stupid stuff that's not even that great!" She shook her head, blonde hair swishing free of her ponytail. I stared at her. I'm pretty sure that my eyes were bugging out.

"S-s-stupid g-gold, y-yeah. S-stupid," I ventured shakily. Solid gold?

"Would you stop interrupting me? It's not all about you, you know," she huffed. Before I could even come up with a good comeback (which probably would've sucked), she continued. "So," she said, clearing her throat, "that's how I became a socialite. I don't know even half of them- I barely talked to a single person on my own. I always had a little possum."

I looked at her in confusion. "You have a possum?"

"Geez, Mel, where've you been?"

"I mean, I knew you had a dog. But a possum? Isn't that a little eccentric?" I asked her, trying to comprehend this information. She glared at me.

"Look, my possum may not be that nice, but you don't have to be mean and act like they're dogs!"

"What? You have more than one possum?"

"Are you even listening to me? I guess you could say I had more than one since they were always switched up…" Taylor mused.

"What are you talking about? Did you show your possums in public?" I asked, rubbing my forehead. She looked at me like I was an idiot; I felt like one, too.

"Of course. What else are possums good for?" she answered matter-of-factly.

"Um, setting free! Possums aren't for public display; they belong with their families in their natural habitat!"

"Geez, Mel, I know I kept them with me really late at night in parties- " she began while I gawked- "but I didn't, like, kidnap them or anything! They went home every night. A lot of them didn't even stay for an entire party!"

"You let your possums loose?" I asked.

"Of course not! Even if I did, they would've stayed with me so they could check out all the cute guys," she sniffed. "They didn't want to be let loose. They wanted to be my friend."

On a hunch, I rolled my eyes and sighed before asking, "Taylor? What's a possum?"

It was her turn to gawk.

"You, Melissa Wu, Asian student extraordinaire, don't know what a possum is? Ha! I knew you weren't that smart!" Taylor gloated. Oh, the price I pay to understand her mind…. "Well, I'll just tell you then. Possums are groups of people that hang out with you 'cause you're cool and hot and stuff. Kinda like friends, but you can't trust 'em much." She smiled knowingly. I pursed my lips before answering.

"You mean a posse?" I asked slowly. She froze.

"Um… aren't they, like, the same thing?"

"No," I said, dragging out the word.

"Well, they are to me!" she sang. And that was that.

"So, why didn't you have true friends?"

"Because you spilled spaghetti on my dress and made me hate all of you."

"Alright, forget that, okay? I am sorry. I didn't know any better."

She seemed to hesitate before nodding. "Fine. But if you do it again, I'll- "

"I don't like spaghetti anymore."

She cocked her head in surprise. "But you loved spaghetti!"

"Not anymore."

"Why? When did that happen? What happened? We called you Mellie-Noodle!"

I winced at the nickname. OK, stop laughing. You probably had a worse nickname!

"Yes, I remember." Unfortunately. "But spaghetti made one of my oldest friends yell at me and say she hated me when I was little. So, I didn't want that to ever happen again. Now, I can't even stand the smell of tomato sauce."

"Oh."

"Yeah."

"Me?"

I nodded.

"Oh."

"Yeah."

Taylor looked away from me, staring straight ahead once more. Her hands were folded in her lap, completely still. I saw her visibly swallow before she opened her mouth to speak.

"You're right."

"About what?"

"I'm not… completely over Jackson."

I looked away.

"That's nice," I said awkwardly.

"No, I don't mean like that! It's just… how do you feel when he talks to you?" When I didn't respond, she answered herself. "Like he wants to know you, right? Like he cares, right? Because he does. It's like he wants to actually make an effort and know you, like, for real. And he used to talk to me that way."

She turned to me sadly, biting her quivering lip.

"Taylor, I- "

"No, it's fine. I knew you liked him and I went after him anyway. I'm sorry. But," she took a breath, "I wanted to know what it was like to have someone actually know who you were even when you didn't know. And I thought- I thought Jackson would do that for me." She swallowed again, uncomfortably.

"Didn't he?" I asked tentatively. She sniffed before squaring her shoulders and looking me in the eye with a gaze so fierce it was almost frightening.

"No. He just wasn't that into me enough. He just kinda wanted cold comfort, and I wanted, um, what's the word…"

I bowed my head, knowing what she meant. "Love?" I suggested softly.

Taylor paused.

"Love." She nodded. "It's hard to feel loved when it seems like everyone who's nice to you only wants your money."

"Well, you should know that I don't want your money at all. Or your clothes," I said with a straight face.

She giggled a little. "Yeah, I bet! I wouldn't let my clothes anywhere near you!"

"Ha ha, very funny."

"It is!" she exclaimed. I waited for her to stop giggling, taking that time to think about what she said before. Something was bothering me.

"Taylor," I began, "why did Jackson need cold comfort? He doesn't seem that type, you know?"

"Oh. Well, I think he wanted to have a girlfriend or something like that to make him feel good about, um, well, I don't know exactly. I think he always liked you first, Melissa. But, you know, that whole 'love' thing… I don't know. Doesn't it seem a little fast? Couldn't we all just be attracted to each other 'cause we're surviving something together?"

I bit my lip, realizing her point.

"I mean," she continued, "what happens when we get home, huh? Do we pretend nothing's happened to us? Do I break up with Eric because he's not a part of my game?"

I realized where she was going, but I wanted to avoid it. Who wants to ruin a good thing, right?

So I sidetracked. Because I'm stupid. And because I'm still only a scared little girl.

"Game?" I asked carefully.

"Game. My life is like a careful game of chess. I move all the pawns just right, crush the others, send out my minions, and guard my king from other queen wannabes. I have to be the queen, not the minion, 'cause I'm a Hagan, and Hagans rule."

"What?" I asked, surprised. Egotistical much?

"I have to protect myself- let no one else have the throne- or else I'll never be good for anything. Queens are beautiful, but they can't be smart. They get into good schools because of their power and money. Queens can only be smart when they're crushing people, and they can never be nice. Nice queens don't get respect, and nice queens get cheated on by their stupid boyf- kings. It's a game, Melissa," Taylor said bitterly, turning to fix me with a hard stare, "A very hard game that can only be played one way. Who can stay at the top the longest? Who can keep her minions from fighting her? Who's the strongest? Who's the most beautiful? Who plays the game right by the rules? There are only two ends to the game. One, you stay on top forever and live the perfect Hollywood life. Two, you say that the game is hard and you can't take it anymore and you take a gun and you put it to your head and you- " She burst into tears, sobbing uncontrollably, her shoulders heaving with her every breath as she covered her face with her arms.

"It's a game, Melissa!" she exclaimed wildly through her sobs as she turned again to me. Her hair had escaped from its ponytail and flew around her face, and her eyes were afraid. Suddenly, she put her hands on my shoulders before crying again, "I have to play it! Me! You think you know what a hard life is? You've got Jackson and friends who love you for who you are. I had someone who dated me 'cause they thought I liked football. I have minions- people who hate me and talk about me all the time! I have a gossip vine that can destroy my enemies and destroy me! Don't you see, Mel? I wasn't ever the bad guy in school. I was the victim."

I let her cry more into my shoulder, using her sobs as an excuse to be silent and think. This was a whole new side of Taylor Hagan that I had never seen. I'd always thought of her as cold and untouchable, but now, I was beginning to think that she was touched the most.

"You… you do have Jackson, you know. If you'd just show this side, I'm sure he'd be happy to be your sincere friend."

"No, Mel. No, no, no. Don't you see?" she echoed, straightening to face me again. "Jackson isn't part of the game. He's too nice, too sincere. My friends have to love power and want to use it. That's how the game goes. Jackson would be like the queen's secret consort," she said.

I cringed. _Consort?_

"Well, not a consort, but a secret friend that isn't accepted in society or something," she amended. "He… I just wanted to know what it's like being you," she said sincerely. "But now… It turns out I can never escape the game, not even on a deserted island far away from my, um, castle." I bit my lip in thought. Either Taylor was delusional or she was right and I had been blind. I wanted the first to be true, but at the same time I didn't.

"I hated you, you know," she said, interrupting my thoughts. She'd calmed down and had returned to staring into space. Her arms locked around her knees in a kind of embrace, and she trembled slightly.

"You hated me?" I couldn't keep the note of incredulity out of my voice.

"Yeah. I hated you because you seemed to have it all. Nathan's a good guy, ya' know. He really is. So, when he asked me out, well," she sighed, "I didn't think it was for something so superficial like sports." I smiled weakly, patting her shoulder awkwardly.

"He'd kill you if you said that to him," I said, trying to force cheer into the conversation.

"I bet he would; I wouldn't put it past him," Taylor answered morosely.

"I hated you, you know," I said, echoing her words. Taylor shrugged with a sigh.

"I know."

I blanched. Sweet heaven, had I been that obvious?

…

Yes. Yes I had. Oops. I nearly did a facepalm right there, but that would have ruined the moment.

"How did you know?" I asked tentatively.

"Well, it was kinda obvious. I mean, you could never just smile at me, could you? Really, Melissa, you aren't that brilliant of an actress as you may think," she replied rather huffily.

"I-" I began pathetically before sighing for like the zillionth time that day. Could we get any more depressing? "Taylor, can't we just be friends?" I asked softly. "Forget all this ever happened between us?"

She turned to me, a sad smile on her face, before shaking her head slowly. "No, Mel," she said gently.

"Come on. Come on, Tay," I tried. "It was only spaghetti."

She pursed her lips slightly before closing her eyes.

"No, Mel," she repeated. "It's more than just spaghetti." Taylor paused for a moment, looking down and running her hand up and down her other arm as if to warm herself. "We're different, now. We're grown up. And sometimes, it's nice to just think that the only reason we're apart now is because of spaghetti. But you and I both have new lives and new baggage. The moment we try to be friends again… I'm afraid you'll find out more about me than you want to know. I'm afraid that you'll become just like all my other friends. What if you change and get greedy? No, Mel. We can't be friends," she said with finality.

"We can!" I persisted. "We were once; we can be again. You don't have to play that stupid game if you don't want to. You know you'd still have us as your friends!"

"Would I, Mel? When we get home, would we all be like we are today? Would Jackson be as open? Would Daley be less bossy? Would Nathan be as, um, not bigheaded? Would we talk to Lex like we respect him? Would you stop being a pushover? Oh, shut it, Mel, you know it's true," she said, dismissing my protests before I could voice them.

"I'm sure Jackson would- "

"No, he wouldn't. He'd go back to thinking we're all rich kid brats who don't know the world outside of our sheltered cocoons or something. He'd be uncomfortable with us, especially since he doesn't wanna go home anyway."

"Well, Daley has- "

"What? Are you out of your mind? Daley's only quiet 'cause she respects Jackson. If Jackson goes back to his old self, so will she. Besides, she's student body president," she said, pronouncing the last three words mockingly.

"Um, well, Nathan was never really- "

"Nathan always thought he was the best. What makes you think he'll stop? OK, maybe he'll be less bigheaded. But you know that if Daley goes back to being her regular witchy self, then he'll go back to tryin' to impress her."

"He wasn't trying to impress her at school!"

"Oh, please, Mel, he was always trying to be better at every frickin thing. That's how boys are when they like someone. Most boys, anyway," she said, eyeing my reaction.

"We wouldn't get to see Lex as much, but I'm sure we'd respect him."

"We barely respect him now!" she protested.

"Would I go back to being a pushover?" I asked myself. Oh, no. That would be the worst horror of all. Was it possible that I had gone through all of that painful change and revelation for nothing?

"Maybe not you. I'm not so sure about any of us, really. I guess it's just… I can't ever change permanently. I'm stuck as queen of the court, and people adore me or loathe me or shower me with things, but they don't really love me. Me, me, I mean. The real me. I really do plot and do mean things, but I am a person, too. Jackson just wanted the nice me. But, we've all got our dark sides, ya' know? I mean, he killed someone!" I frowned at her. "OK, OK, he got into a fight, same diff, Mel. Geez, don't take it so seriously. My dark side is that I really kinda do like all of that plotting. I mean, yeah, I only like it within certain limits. If someone deserves it, I mean. And heck yeah, I felt so, so bad when I embarrassed you that day by playing your video diary all over camp, but I do like plotting. I kinda like being bad, but just as long as I'm doing good by it. That doesn't happen often, so I'm stuck feeling guilty."

"You know, there's someone who likes you for you. He likes your bad side and your good side.'Said it made him feel energetic to plot with you," I said, nudging her with my elbow. Taylor smiled a little, scuffing her foot in the sand. She was practically blushing!

"Eric," she said with a little laugh.

"Yeah, Eric. He likes you a whole lot."

Taylor tried to hide her smile, and I grinned.

"And apparently, you like him too!" I exclaimed.

"Shut up, Mel, it's just a crush," she said, nudging me back. Almost unconsciously, she reached up to finger her necklace. I leaned in.

"I don't remember that charm on your necklace," I noticed. With good reason, too. The necklace was silvery with four little diamonds and one slightly bigger sapphire pendant. Well, actually, all of the gems had disappeared. That tends to happen when rich people wear valuable necklaces to eco-camping trips. In the sapphire pendant's socket there was instead a little anchor tied of coconut husk. It was incredibly simple and coarse, especially on such a beautiful necklace.

"Well," Taylor said, smiling a little shyly, "Eric made it for me. Gave it to me and said that it was a good luck charm since he's, you know, charmed." She laughed, fingering the anchor more. "It's really beautiful, don't you think?"

It was so coarse, so simple, so rough and callow, and so-

"Beautiful."

We were silent for a moment, looking at her necklace.

"I think we can be friends, Tay," I tried again. She gave me a weak smile.

"I wish we could. But when we go back, who says I'll be wanted by you all? The odds are that Eric will follow me wherever, which is fine, because it's normal for a queen to have an obsessed, hot king. But in the end? In the end I go back to who I was. People don't expect me to change. If I do, they won't trust me. You're a good person, Mel, but after a few months, you'll give up on me, too. It's too late for me to get out of this game, because in the end, it's not a game. It's a trap."

"So, if we can't be friends," I said while getting off the log, "can we have a truce?"

"I'd like that," Taylor said, her mouth twisting in a morose smile. She walked in front of me, back to playing her game, when I stopped her.

"Friend or no," I began, "I'll still be here for you. You know that, right?" She smiled genuinely this time.

"Right."

* * *

That evening, Jackson and I walked away from our tree after doing… well, nothing bad, I promise! I just had to ask him about something that had piqued my curiosity that morning.

"Jackson?"

"Yes?" he answered, sliding his hand into mine. I had to control myself from hyperventilating. He was the guy, and he held my hand! Eep!

Ahem. Moving along…

"This morning, -"

"What?" he asked, tense. "Did Taylor say something?"

"No," I laughed and he relaxed. "We're fine. I was just wondering about this morning. You know, when you kissed me all of a sudden? Like, randomly? While I was in the middle of insulting myself? You just kinda swooped down and didn't let me finish." As much as girls like guys to be super romantic, Jackson just wasn't the type of guy to shower kisses at every waking moment. Just every other waking moment, and I had absolutely no problem with that.

"Yes?" he asked tightly. I noticed in alarm that he had tensed again.

"Um, why? You're not normally the type of guy to just swoop down and kiss a girl."

"Hormones," he answered gruffly after a short pause. I tilted my head in confusion.

"Hormones?" I asked. He took a deep breath.

"You, uh, you bit your lip. In front of me. And I, uh, well... hormones," he said in a clipped tone, refusing to look at me. I tried to keep back a smile, but it burst forth anyway as a wide grin. Still grinning madly, I stopped him and turned him to face me.

"So… I bit my lip, and it turned you on?" He nodded.

"Look, Mel, I'm a teenage guy, and things like this are bound to happen, so it would be easier for both of us if you'd- " he stopped, his eyes widening considerably. I think it had to do with the fact that I was chewing my lip. And, yeah, I did lick my lips just a little. And heck, yeah, I was enjoying the way his blue eyes were darkening so much and how I was feeling tingly again because of it. And just when I figured he was about to randomly kiss me or something…

Or something being the key phrase here…

I ran from him, laughing all the way. I swear, sometimes I wonder about my sanity.

Let's just face it. Even good girls aren't immune to hormones.

* * *

**AN: Hey, if I tried to adultnap Johnny Pacar, who else would join me? No one? I don't know; I guess I'm just a little slaphappy after typing til' 2:30 AM... Yeah, I just wanted to shower you with more guilt. :) lol. Anyways, I gave you my Christmas gift, so will you give me one, too? All you need to do is click that gorgeous green button done there labeled "Review". Do it. Do it do it do it. Now. Right now. Please?**


	9. Chapter 9: Jealousy

****

Author's Note: Finally! I was actually afraid of this chapter because it was becoming so looong, but then my muse shifted and Ta-Dah! Chapter 9, peoples. Oh, and read my official (yet unnoficial) disclaimer on my profile. You know, if you really do believe that I own Flight 29 Down. Because I don't, okay? Can we move on? It's kind of a touchy subject. :P Oh, and reviewers? You seriously rock. *holds up glass* A toast- to you!

* * *

"Jackson, I don't think I can fish," I told him. He had decided that he needed to "lecture" me on my cruel and unusual "punishment" yesterday. All I'd done was bite my lip! Either way, he'd used his hypnotic powers of forceful persuasion (i.e. he kissed me) to drag me out to an isolated spot on the beach that he claimed was a good fishing spot. So, now we were sitting on a large outcrop of wet rock jutting a little into the ocean, holding two flimsy, handmade fishing rods and fishing. Well, he was fishing. I was actually attacking the water with the fishing line and trying not to hit him. _Hard_.

"Of course you can, Mel. Everyone can fish," he said languidly, stretching back before reeling in yet another fish.

"That's your fifth one," I observed, barely keeping the resentment out of my voice. He shrugged.

"And?"

"And? And I haven't caught a single one! This isn't working, and you know it." I did my very best to mimic a Taylor-patented pout, but I think I looked like a fish. Of course, I wouldn't actually know since I _hadn't caught a single fish_.

"Stop giving up. If Taylor can do it, you can, too," he persisted. He rolled up his pants before dangling his bare feet in the cool water. I figured that the fish would probably hurt me for practically thrashing them. Now, if I could only kill one and get it up here… I suddenly scowled. Abby would kill me. I could NOT let fishing ruin my mood, especially since I'd just been self-diagnosed as bipolar.

"What does Taylor have to do with this? This is you dragging me here against my will to do something I'm not good at," I protested, resisting the urge to stick my tongue out at him.

"You seemed pretty willing to me," he said, holding back a grin. My jaw dropped.

"You forced me here! You hypnotized me!"

"I kissed you, Mel. You kissed me back. No hypnotism."

"Kissing, hypnotizing- they're all the same," I said, waving off his logic. Jackson shook his head and reeled another stupid fish in. Stupid fish.

"C'mon, Mel. Relax."

"Relax? We're on a deserted island with no way home; no search ships have come after us, and we eat coconuts, bananas, and fish every day! Why should I be relaxed?" I exclaimed. Alright, I do admit that I may have gotten a bit overemotional, but I swear it was just the heat.

"Because," he began, his eyes twinkling as his face broke out into a grin, "you're on a deserted island away from home with no adults and we eat coconuts, bananas, and fish every day. Why shouldn't you be relaxed?" I tried to speak, my mouth moving up and down like a fish out of water- stupid fish.

"Captain Russell is an adult," I pointed out.

"Nah, he's really a toddler's brain packed into an overweight, 40 year old man who's got no talent for flying."

"Jackson!"

"What?"

"That was… rude!" I exclaimed.

"And true," he said nonchalantly. I shook my head.

"Sort of," I conceded reluctantly. "Wait, no! That was rude!" He just smiled at me before reeling in another fish. Geez.

"Mel, you gotta be patient with this," he coached. "Stop trying to kill the ocean."

"The ocean is what's keeping me away from home," I joked lightly.

"Exactly," he muttered darkly.

"Jackson."

"Mel."

"You still don't want to go back?" I asked.

"I want to go back home, sure. I don't want to go back and face whatever stuff I have to go through," he replied shortly. "Can we not discuss this?"

"Yeah. Yeah, sure." I sighed a little to myself. I'd wanted to help Jackson- I always had. From the very beginning, all I'd wanted was to know him and help him and make him feel better. And now, even though we were already a couple, he still wasn't letting me in. But, he'd let Taylor in before they'd even become a couple. He'd played his song for her, first.

"You okay?" he asked me, interrupting my dismal thoughts. I nodded, not trusting my voice.

"Are you sure?"

I swallowed before answering.

"I'm sure," I answered, managing a small smile.

_Come on, Jackson, let me in._

How did Taylor manage to get Jackson to open up when I still couldn't? I left the question unanswered, afraid to know the answer.

* * *

"We caught fish," Jackson declared, a string of fish slung over his shoulder as he walked past Nathan and Daley. I followed him, holding our fishing rods and feeling very, very down.

"By 'we,' he means 'he'," I called out, dumping the rods on the sand before flopping down beside them. He lowered himself beside me.

"No, no, you did a pretty good job out there," he tried. I shot him a half glare through partially opened eyes.

"No. I did horrible, just like always. I told you I can't fish!"

"And I told you that you needed to be patient," he said firmly. I turned away from him, waving him away.

"I'm not Taylor," I mumbled. He hesitated slightly, and I felt a little nervous, hoping for him to say something. I waited, holding my breath, for his response. Maybe I shouldn't have been so depressing...

He walked away. "I'm gonna go fish some more," he said over his shoulder.

I felt sick inside, with worry and regret. I worried over why he hadn't said anything. I regretted saying anything at all. Why couldn't I have just let him tell me I was good? Oh, no. No, no, no, I was over this and had defeated this and I was cheerful Mel and I couldn't go back and I couldn't think that… No, I couldn't think that! But I did, anyway. Because, maybe my life hadn't become perfect suddenly. Maybe…

Maybe Jackson wasn't as completely mine as I wanted. Maybe he was… hers, too.

A monster roared to life within me, and I felt my stomach churn with that familiar feeling.

_Jealousy_.

Welcome back.

* * *

"I never can stay completely at peace for one moment, can I? Nooo, I have to have the crazy emotions. And she has to change. And he has to change. All the time! Why me, Daley? What did I do to this world?" I ranted, pacing back and forth in front of a very disgruntled Daley. She sat on a big, dry rock, conveniently situated in a clearing not far from camp in the jungle where I could rant to her. "Daley, what do I do?"

The redhead nervously ran a hand through her unruly hair and cast a quick glance to the general direction of camp before her eyes flickered nervously back to me. "Look, uh, Mel," she began. I narrowed my eyes. What, she didn't remember my name? "I'm not really, uh, sure if I can help you with your, um, personal problems," she said. Her lips curved in a tiny smile as she became more confident. "Personally, I was disappointed when you and Jackson got together. I was hoping for some girl power! You know?" she asked me expectantly. I glared at her.

"No, actually, I don't know. Tell me."

"Well, Jackson totally led you on," she said matter-of-factly. "So, I always thought that you should move on. You know, make him jealous. Make him come to you. Get it?" I stared. It took all of my strength to keep my mouth closed. I nodded slowly.

"Yeah," I ventured. "I think I get it. Thanks, Daley."

"Glad to help," she chirped. "But, I really have to go. Important stuff to do, you know."

"Right," I answered, trying to smile. She smiled back.

"Maybe you should talk to Nathan! He is your best friend."

"Right! Great idea, Daley!" I exclaimed, finally excited. It was about time that the redhead became the bossy know-it-all with answers that she used to be. Granted, her idea had really just been a trick to get me out of her skin, but I didn't care much. Nathan. Nathan was a guy, and he was (once) my best friend. He'd help me.

Said superhero stared at me blankly, his fingers twitching with that constant need of his to do something.

"Why me, Nathan? What did I do to this world?" I finished ranting for the second time that day, fixing Nathan with a helpless stare. I had asked to talk with him, and yes, I did feel guilty when he gave me a look of surprise. Had I really been that bad of a best friend? I waited expectantly for the guy's perspective, which was sure to clear things up.

"You didn't do anything, Mel," he told me firmly. I smiled at him. Finally, a sane human being who gave me real answers!

"You didn't do anything. He didn't either."

My smile froze.

"But-but-" I began.

"But nothing! Lighten up, Mel. Aren't you glad that Taylor's back? Shouldn't you be? And Jackson's Jackson; he's always accepting people and stuff. You should be used to it by now. I mean, just because a guy talks to more girls than his girlfriend, doesn't mean he's flirting with them! Geez, girls never seem to get this. First we're all, 'Hey! What's up!" to a 'gal' friend, and then you're all 'You were checking her out! How could you!' You know? It's hard to deal with all the drama."

I stared at him. Typical boys, having no relationship advice.

"Nathan?" I asked hesitantly, interrupting his rant.

"Yeah?" he asked.

"Um, I need to go. Thanks for, er, helping." He smiled sincerely.

"'Welcome, Mel. Hey, do you remember what day of the week Daley and I, you know, started dating? Last week she was the only one to remember our… I think it was 2 weeks? One week? Well, she remembered it and I didn't. Man," he said, shaking his head, "this relationship business is tough. So," he said, rounding up on me, "do you remember?"

I groaned.

* * *

"Eric?" I asked, suddenly feeling awkward.

"Mel? What's up? And have you seen Taylor? It's our, um… one week anniversary? I think it's our one week anniversary. It is our one week anniversary- right?" I could sense the panic rolling off of him in waves.

"I'm pretty sure it doesn't matter," I told him, rolling my eyes.

"It does!" His eyes were wild. "Taylor's totally gonna dump me if I forget this!"

"Taylor likes you too much," I informed him. He instantly perked up, momentarily forgetting his panic.

"She does?" he asked, a smirk tugging at the corners of his lips.

"Oh, definitely," I cooed, resisting the urge to slap sense into him. He popped his collar, the smirk now spreading from ear to ear on his face.

"I knew she couldn't resist all this," he boasted. I rolled my eyes.

"Eric."

"Yes, Mel?" he asked in a sweet voice.

Well, I'm not going to bore you with details, but that's about the part that I lost it and snapped. I ranted and raved and waved my hands high in the air with every word.

"I mean, Taylor's your girlfriend! She's not his anymore!" I finished, registering Eric's wince at my words.

I paused. "Um, right?" I asked, suddenly feeling very much on edge.

"She's mine," he confirmed, and I sighed in relief. He shot me an odd look. "Insecure much?"

"Shut up, Eric," I retorted. "Ok, fine, yes. Very. I don't know, it's just… Jackson took me fishing this morning-"

"Been there, done that," Eric cut in with a nod.

"Right. He took me- wait, what? You went fishing with Jackson?" I asked, confused.

"No," he told me, slowly enunciating every word. "_Taylor_ took me fishing. Taylor, my girlfriend."

"Oh," I replied intelligently. With scrambled thoughts, it was hard for me to remember what I was talking about before, but I remembered after an embarrassingly long pause. Why me? "So, he took me fishing this morning and I didn't catch a single stupid fish- didn't even stab one! And he was all Captain Fisherman and being absolutely perfect at everything as usual, and I was just being a pain, whining his ears off. A stick in the mud. A party-pooper," I rambled. Eric reached over to physically shut my mouth. I made an odd (highly unattractive, but for the sake of my self esteem, we're gonna call that a Mel kind of sexy) noise of protest.

"Melissa Wu, didn't you tell me you were tired of feeling this way?" he demanded, surprising me. Eric, even sweet Eric, was never this serious.

"N-no," I stuttered, my voice barely audible through his hand. He rolled his eyes.

"Well, it was all over your face and it would take a complete idiot to not know it. Can you stop being so jealous? It's just Taylor."

"Just Taylor? Taylor's absolutely perfect!" I cried. "And Jackson did ask her first!" Eric removed his hand sharply.

"When you talk, it tickles," he informed me.

"OK, whatever, but help me here!"

"I'm not worried."

"But I am! And what do you have to do with this?"

"Well, Taylor _is_ my girlfriend now," he said offhandedly.

"Is it official?" I asked him pickily. His eyes widened considerably.

"Well," he said slowly, " I kinda thought it would be… you know, obvious even without me asking her… you know, since we kiss and all… I mean, it's not like we're friends with benefits… and we do have that anniversary thing… Wait, no, she didn't do anything! She hasn't said anything about the anniversary! What if we're not official and we are friends with benefits?" he cried, horrified.

I nearly broke into tears. No one on this deathly island had a single stable relationship!

"What's going on?" Lex asked suspiciously as he walked in on us.

"Nothing… why?" I asked. Eric was clearly not in a state to talk to Lex.

"Well, it's kinda like when Jackson and Taylor were…" Lex wrinkled his nose, "… 'together.'" I gulped.

Oh, no. _No, no, no, no_-

"No," I answered, gritting my teeth.

"Well, it just seems that way," he said, still leveling a suspicious gaze at us.

"How?" I asked.

"You guys are talking, and Nathan's acting weird again, and Jackson and Taylor are fishing together, and Da-"

"They're fishing together?" I exclaimed. Lex nodded, his gaze becoming concerned now.

"Yeah, for, like, half an hour now," he said, checking his ever-so-accurate watch.

"Ha-half an hour?" Eric asked weakly.

"Mm-hmm," Lex nodded. His eyes suddenly narrowed again. "Why?"

"Um-"

"We're not sure," I cut in. "Where are they?" I asked him. He looked me over carefully, as if mentally going over a checklist of symptoms of insanity. I almost screamed.

Guess I'm insane, then.

We left Lex hurriedly after he pointed us to the right side of camp, over a few jagged rocks. To be more precise, I dragged Eric down the beach and plopped him down when I caught sight of Jackson and Taylor.

"OK, shut up, Eric," I whispered to him, peering through the rocks. "I want to hear them."

"We're spying on them?" he asked incredulously.

"Well, yeah. We never did get the chance to do that other 'plan' of yours before Jackson and I got together-"

"And Taylor and me got together," Eric cut in importantly. I didn't bother correcting his grammar.

"Uh-huh, sure. So now we're doing something. Can you please be quiet and listen to them?"

Jackson and Taylor sat a mere two feet in front of our position, shoulders barely brushing each other. I felt my stomach churn when I noticed that Taylor had already caught more fish than Jackson. Their voices were clear, and I felt my stomach drop when I heard the light, carefree tone in their voices. It was like nothing had ever happened.

"You weren't like this after I asked you out," Jackson said, a curious tone underlining his words. I tensed. He had a girlfriend. _Me_. Right? Taylor didn't respond, taking the time to reel in another fish. He nudged her, and I could see his grin as he turned to her.

"So tell me what happened," he teased. She turned to him finally, the salty ocean air playing with her blonde hair, and sighed.

"You don't want to know," she informed him quietly.

"I do, actually," he said in a more serious tone. She huffed a bit and chewed her lip. I smiled a bit when I noticed that his eyes did not darken the way they did when I bit my lip.

"Fine. But only if you answer my question."

"You go first."

"Scared?" she taunted.

"No, I just asked you first," he said with an easy smile. She shrugged nonchalantly.

"Fine. It's possible that I did like you a little. But when you asked me out… I don't know. It didn't really click like I kinda thought it should. And… now, don't take this the wrong way, ok?" Her head was bowed, but she peered up at him through her hair. He nodded slowly. "I was disappointed when you asked me out," she said bluntly. I turned to see Eric grinning like a maniac.

"I see," Jackson said after a moment. He turned back to the ocean and reeled in another stupid fish. It was Taylor's turn to nudge him.

"But, come on, it's okay, right? 'Cause we both know you weren't happy with me. We both know you always liked Melissa," she said.

"You know, you still haven't answered my question. I get that you didn't like me as much as Eric, but why did you act different so suddenly?" he asked. He avoided the topic so obviously, so easily, it hurt my heart.

"Well, you know, um… maybe I wanted to make Eric jealous?"

"You used me?" Jackson asked incredulously.

"Kinda," she answered guiltily. They sat in stony silence for a moment, and I dared myself to smile, as horrible as it was. Was I jealous for no reason? I hoped so.

"It's alright. I probably shouldn't be so mad. I, uh, I might have been trying to make Melissa jealous, too," he conceded reluctantly.

"Mel," Eric's voice whispered in my hair. I jerked in surprise.

"What? You're ruining this moment!" I hissed back.

"I just wanted to let you know that your eyes are bugging out."

Let's all take a moment to appreciate the quality of self-control. Without the smidge I have… Eric's eyes wouldn't have been the only thing bugging out. Not that I'm violent or anything…

With a huff, I turned my attention back to Taylor and Jackson.

"Why?" Taylor asked. "She liked you a lot to begin with."

"Well, I wasn't really sure, you know. She hadn't really said much about it, and she started acting normally around me, so I figured the crush had worn off. So, I wanted to make her jealous," he said. "Now that I think about it, that probably wasn't my smartest idea," he chuckled, and I held myself from laughing with him.

All this time…

I smiled. _Oh, jealousy_. You get me every time.

* * *

**Author's Note: Like it? Hate it? Too corny? Let me know in a review, please! They make my day, guys, and inspire me to update sooner. This chapter was totally about to become some long novel thing, but muses are weird like that. I sense a closing chapter! But at the same time, I've been thinking of writing a sequel, just because I was originally going to make this a very long 30-somethin chapter story, but realized I don't have the energy for that. Divide and conquer, my friends. So, sequel? Review and let me know! In the words of an adorable 1 year old I know, "Huggie!" (And no, I'm not advertising diapers.)**


	10. Chapter 10: Terror

**Author's Note: Apparently, I lied. Not only did I take FOREVER to update, but I _will _have the energy to make this more than 10 chapters (although probably not 30!). So. Here you go: evidence that I'm a liar and a horrible updater. :P I will have the energy, but I'll have slower updates than usual. Disclaimer and another apology thing on profile if you actually care. ;) Review? Also: if you're a blonde, no I'm not a hater. Stereotypes are wrong. Really, I don't think blondes are unintelligent at all. For the purpose of this story, I (Mel) calls Eric a stereotypical blonde. I don't mean offense to anyone out there,'kay?**

* * *

Did you know that a line, by its geometric definition, extends in both directions infinitely? It does. It's constant and straight, no twists or turns, no random dips. It's not a rollercoaster. It's a line.

Love?

I mean, _like_. As in attraction. Because, I can't love.

Right?

Right. That's completely and totally right. Technically, a teenager is still developing the part of the brain that is crucial for making long-term decisions. Like loving. Right? Because love is completely constant and dependent.

Love has no twists.

It's a line.

* * *

"Eric?"

"Hmm?"

Eric lay on the sandy floor inside our tent, painstakingly drawing a line in the sand with a stick that he claimed divided the tent exactly in half. Claimed. As in, it didn't.

"Your line… "

"You got a problem with my line?" he asked defensively, adjusting his hat from falling over his face.

"Um, you're not dividing it in half."

"There are more guys than girls; it's fair!"

"No, Lex sleeps next to Daley. On the girls' side."

We stared each other down. Technically, he stared up, but he gave up after his hat fell off.

There actually was a pretty good reason why I was arguing pointlessly with someone who didn't listen to logic. See, it involves another illogical being: a certain bossy redhead who was appalled at her companion in the Land of Illogical-ness.

Around 5 minutes ago, Daley ordered me to "go fight for our land! Show them who's boss! We will not take this lying down!" She didn't even listen to me try to convince her that it wasn't a huge mutiny concocted by the guys. After being filled with such righteous indignation, she decided she'd send a mercenary to fight this injustice.

Lex refused point blank.

This was the reason that I, Melissa On-The-Student-Council-For-Three-Years-Straight-But-Too-Shy-Too-Go-For-An-Actual-Office Wu, was arguing pointlessly with Eric.

Eric looked away from our stare down.

"Ha! I won."

"Congratulations, you won a staring contest. Have a piece of candy- oh wait, there isn't any!" Eric answered sarcastically.

"Well, I guess I'll take the next best thing," I said nonchalantly.

"What, a coconu- hey!"

With a fast-as-something-slower-than-lighting kick, I sent Eric's hard work into dust… which floated in a violent manner (yes, it's possible- ask Eric!) into Eric's face.

Oops.

"Um, are you okay?"

"No! Do you think it's okay for me to be blind?" he sputtered angrily, rubbing furiously at his face.

"Um, I-"

"'Um,' you blinded me! You know, I could sue you for this. When we get home, I mean. So do what I say!"

"Huh?"

"Melissa Wu, do you want the McGorrills to take this to court? I could add the whole border-jumping story, too."

"You're crazy," I informed him, sitting directly on the remains of his line.

"No," he retorted, "you are."

"Eric," I sighed, rolling my eyes, "what exactly do you want?"

"I want?"

"Yes. _Want_. Eric want something?" I asked him slowly. "Does Big Bad McGorrill _want_?"

"I'm not an idiot."

"I know. You're just a freakishly stereotypical blonde."

"Ouch. That hurts, man. In here," he said, pounding his fist over his heart. That was when he decided to pull out the big guns. Slowly turning his head to look up at me, he gave me the best puppy-dog face I'd ever seen. By best, I mean there were little crystal tears wavering in his baby blues.

"Um… I…" I began intelligently.

"Mel? My eyes- they really sting," he said softly.

"Um… I…"

"Really, really sting," he pushed.

"Um… I…"

"They sting so bad, I think my eyes are pink," he whimpered piteously.

"Um… I…"

"Dangit, Mel! Don't you have anything more intelligent to say?" he snapped.

Spell over.

"I mean," he coughed, "I think I have dust in my throat." He coughed again, making sure to look up at me with that stupid puppy-dog face.

"Nope," I said, crossing my arms and looking away. "Not buying it."

"Fine," he retorted, flopping on his back before snapping straight up again. "Stupid sand!" He tried to dust the pesky particles off.

"Wait… where are the sleeping bags?" I asked slowly, mentally slapping myself for not noticing sooner. His eyes suddenly widened and he looked away from me quickly.

"Eric? What do you know?" In an instant, I stood over his slightly cowering form.

"Mel, geez. Just… just, chill, okay? And why do you have to accuse me anyway?" he pouted.

"Eric. Still not buying it."

He blew a puff of air and pretended not to notice me.

"Eric! Where are the sleeping bags!"

"Um," he coughed nervously, fixing his hat, "they might be in that jungle."

"Oh? And why might they be there?"

"Uh… there may have been an incident."

"What kind of incident, Eric?"

* * *

"What were you thinking?" Daley exploded minutes later.

"We-"

"No, I'll tell you what you were thinking. Nothing! That's what you were thinking!" she interrupted angrily, pacing back and forth. Three very ashamed boys (and one calm, tall, strong, brave- focus!) stood before her. Taylor watched, slightly concerned for her boyfriend.

"How long do you think this'll be?" she asked me, her eyes never leaving Eric. I flinched slightly, surprised. We hadn't exactly talked much.

"Um… Taylor… I really don't know," I answered helplessly.

"Too bad."

"Yeah."

"But, really. The guys went a little far this time. Lex should've been smarter."

"Yeah, I guess."

"I mean, really? What the heck!"

"Uh, yeah."

Daley continued on her tirade, oblivious to our little conversation.

"You just don't do stuff like that! Think of the consequences! I mean, Lex, you're smart and all, but you could've died! You all could have died!" She bit her lip worriedly. I patted her on the shoulder.

"Hey, it's okay. I mean, they're fine, aren't they?"

"That's not the point!" Daley interrupted, glaring at me for talking during her rant. "I mean, I'm glad that you're safe and all," she amended, leveling a stern glance at her brother, "but you could've destroyed a whole lot more than the sleeping bags! The tent could've burned, the camp could've burned, the jungle- maybe the whole freakin' island!"

Jackson gazed at her impassively, before sliding his gaze over to me.

_Help_, he silently pleaded.

"Um, Daley, I don't think it would've burned down the jungle…" I tried pathetically. Jackson hid a grin at my attempt.

"The camp! Them!" She glared at Nathan. "What were you thinking?"

"Um… I was thinking that Lex is a genius and that he knew what he was doing," he tried. Daley averted her gaze to Lex.

"Gee, thanks, Nathan. Glad you're such a loyal friend," Lex muttered.

"Yeah, Lex, what exactly were you thinking?" Taylor asked.

"For your information, it wasn't my idea," he declared. Eric's eyes widened to the size of saucers and motioned frantically for Lex to shut up.

"Hey," Lex shrugged, "if Nathan can bail, so can I. I declare this trust broken."

"… Daley?" I asked in the briefly quiet spell that followed. "You okay?" She was in hysterics.

"T-trust?" she asked belatedly. "As in… alliance?"

A second later, a cacophony of noise erupted as Nathan, Eric, and occasionally Lex frantically tried to defend themselves.

"OK, shut up!" Daley exclaimed. No one listened.

_Help_, I pleaded silently to Jackson as he stood apart from the others.

He shrugged and swiftly moved behind the three boys, sliding his hands between them to effortlessly separate them.

"Calm down. We've got all the time in the world."

Daley looked slightly miffed at his laidback tone, but took advantage of the effect he made on the others.

"Go. One of you. Ummm… Lex, you go first," she commanded, her eyes glinting dangerously.

"Hey! That's nepotism!" Eric protested.

"Would you rather have me pick Nathan?"

Nathan looked up hopefully.

"… Well, no. That's still kind of nepotism," Eric muttered stubbornly.

"We're not family."

"You're going out. You act like an old couple that hasn't learned to switch off the PDA. Ugh."

Daley's nostrils flared as her cheeks flushed.

"Eric, you lousy, hypocritical, lazy- lazy… lazy swine!"

"Whoa. I don't eat that much, 'kay? Why can't you chill Daley? Like your boyfriend."

"I can chill. I can be very chill. I can be so chill- chill enough to freeze your butt off until you run into a volcano crying!" she exploded. Her hair flew around wildly, and for a moment, she really did look like a volcano.

"Um, Daley, you- "

She turned her wild eyes on me.

"Shut up, Mel, I'm busy. Unless you actually have something important and useful to add to this conversation, stay quiet!"

Jackson turned on her. That whole scary aura (which was supposed to have vanished by now) suddenly reappeared. I gulped. Daley gulped. Eric smirked and nudged a wary Lex. Taylor studied her nails, bored.

Nathan seemed a bit torn as to whether he should take the opportunity to run or be a loyal boyfriend.

"Daley? Could you repeat that?" Jackson asked in a deceivingly calm voice.

"R-right. I said, um… hehe… I was joking. Joking! Really. Sorry, Mel," she said, turning to me with a forced laugh. "Hehe… I have no idea what I was thinking! Just a joke. Jackson? Just a joke."

"Yeah," he grunted noncommittally.

"Just a joke," she repeated meekly. I had to keep myself from smiling.

"You know, Jackson," I said softly, walking over to him, "it really wasn't that big a deal. She was just exploding. I'm used to it. We're all used to it."

He subtly slid his arm around me, and I knew that anyone else would just think he was leaning against the tree.

"Yeah. I know. It's just funny to see the exploding volcano melt."

"Evil," I muttered.

"Sweet," he murmured, turning slightly to touch his nose to my hair and inhale deeply. "What did you do, steal Taylor's shampoo stash?" he asked.

"Uh, no. I would be dead, then."

"Hmm, yeah. I've heard dead people don't smell very good."

"… Ew." I wrinkled my nose in disgust. He laughed at my expression.

"So what did you do?" he repeated.

"I stole Taylor's shampoo stash," I said with a grin.

"I guess I was wrong. Dead people do smell nice."

"Ugh, gross. I was joking. All I did was try to wash these annoying, prickly berry-things out of my hair."

"What prickly berry-things?"

"Eric," I explained.

"Eric?"

"He may have 'accidentally' spilled crushed red berries onto my hair to show me what you had done to the sleeping bags." Eric and Lex had brainstormed together and were inspired to make some sort of chemical concoction involving the juice of red berries and certain plants that Lex had claimed were medicinal. Lex wasn't actually going to develop it, but Eric (who had been tempted when he found out what a perfect prank dying Jackson's hair pinkish-red would be) talked him into it. Nathan got involved (of course), and soon they were hiding the whole experiment inside our tent. Lex had mentioned something about needing an environment with less air flow, or something like that. Personally, I think he'd wanted to find out if Nathan's hair really did frizz in humidity. Unfortunately, the chemicals, the flammable sleeping bags, and the heat of the fire (which a certain blonde haired someone was supposed to have been tending) made a chemical fire. Yeah. I know.

"When?" Jackson asked me after a moment.

"Before I told Daley. It's not like I wanted her to accuse me of trying to imitate a redhead."

"Why would she do that?"

"She's very sensitive about her hair and how redheads seem to be left out."

"Really? I didn't think she cared about that type of stuff."

"Well, she cared when the school newspaper sent a blonde journalist to interview Nathan after his big win in some game, and one of the questions was 'Blondes or brunettes?'"

"I thought she hated Nathan."

"I think she's always liked him. As competition, or something. It probably has to do with the fact that he's the only person she knows who isn't afraid to compete against her."

"Huh. So then what happened?"

"Do you really want to know or are you trying to distract me so I don't notice you smelling my hair?" He inhaled before peering down at me in surprise.

"Both." I smiled up at him.

"Well, she sent in a 'scathing review to let that blonde brat know that redheads are also equal among the ranks of blondes and brunettes, only more vivid'. Her words, not mine."

He laughed. "Sounds like something Daley would do," he said, a half smile brightening up his face. I grew warm at the sight.

* * *

"You're totally in, like, love!" Taylor squealed. I stared at her, feeling an uncomfortably familiar blush creep up my face.

"Not true," I managed.

"Totally! You're in denial, Melissa!"

"Oh, no, you're just not looking at the real world," I said. Voice of reason- that's my role.

"Oh, please. What did you just say? 'Whenever Jackson smiles, I smile too! It makes me feel so… warm inside. Like he's becoming more open with me, you know?' Wasn't that you, Melissa Wu?" Daley asked me in a challenging voice.

"That doesn't mean I love him. Love's a line."

They frowned at me.

"What the heck are you talking about? Love's a rollercoaster!" Taylor stated matter-of-factly.

"No, definitely not! I'm scared of heights!" I cried.

"Did you just… whimper?" Daley asked, one eyebrow raised. I swallowed, embarrassed.

"Well… maybe I did… but that's not what matters! It's just… love's constant, okay? I can't be constant! I'm always changing and stuff. It doesn't even make sense anymore. I just want… for me and Jackson to stay here for a while. Isn't that fine?"

"Where exactly is 'here'?" Taylor asked slowly.

"I don't know. Here. Comfortable. Just for a while, I want to be comfortable. I don't want to force myself to say that I love him, or-"

"Ha! You admitted it!" Daley cheered, pointing at me.

"I didn't admit anything. Why would I force him into something like that? Why would I force myself? 'Here' is a very nice place to be in. Besides, we shouldn't get too serious. We've got to focus on getting saved. I mean, have you seen the clouds lately?"

"Oh, I know," Taylor nodded importantly. "I haven't been getting much of a tan."

"Oh… that sucks…" I tried. I really did try. But sometimes, Tay-tay was from the past, not in my present.

"Well, anyway, love may not necessarily be a rollercoaster, but it's definitely not a line," Daley declared, stalking past me to put her idle hands to work.

"Well, it's not a point, is it? Wait… oh my gosh! You're a genius, Daley! It's a ray!" I exclaimed delightedly.

"You're hopeless," Taylor said flatly, looking me over as if I was a disgrace.

"Not everything is math, Mel," Daley said.

Whatever. Math is logical and safe, and to every problem, there's a good answer.

Except for pi. Pi is just a weird, never ending decimal, but no one cares about that. Love isn't pi, anyway.

"Whoa, guys. I think… get over to camp! All of you!"

We heard Nathan's panicked voice slicing through the comfortable. We ran. Someone stumbled. We kept running.

Short staccato steps. Little sentences. In moments of terror, that's all you remember, right? Terror isn't logical, but it's clearer than day. Nothing about it is vague.

That's what I was thinking when I looked over to the horizon for the first time that day.

"Oh, my-"

"What is that?"

"What the-"

"-don't. Let's not look at it anymore, okay?"

Jackson looked at the horizon grimly. "Looks like a bad storm."

That was an understatement. The clouds were black and puffy, and even though they were far away, we could make out flashes of lightning between the clouds. Although we were standing in a picture-perfect island paradise, we could see the distinction where the calm blue waters morphed into angry, roiling waves, crashing and smashing. I shuddered as the wind suddenly picked up.

I wouldn't mind going on a rollercoaster if it meant I could escape from that storm.

From the looks on everyone else's faces, we were all terrified.

Where was my logic, now?

* * *

**Author's Note: Review? I'll do my best to update again. I looked at the entire story and decided it could use more plot. So, uh, yeaahhh... review? :D**


	11. Chapter 11: Determination

**author's note:** Um. I'M SO SORRY. This has been on indefinite hiatus since, what, March? Yes, March. AND I'M SO SORRY. This isn't the best chapter... imo. It's not really my favorite fic (and it was my first one, too. *sigh* ) I was _gonna_ take this off of ffnet and retouch the entire thing before reposting it, but then this very amazing person sent me a very amazing review and PM. For being the only one to vote on my poll for what to do with this story and for begging me to update, I dedicate this chapter to you, LionRoaR. I'm sorry it's months late :( Updates on this thing will be sporadic, by the way. I wasn't originally gonna finish this chapter today. Let's just say there are two oneshots that were supposed to be posted, but are still unfinished :P Enjoy :)

**_disclaimer:_** This is unnecessary. You guys know the truth.

* * *

Daley took charge. Kind of. "Lex! What is that?" she shrieked at her younger brother, flailing wildly.

"Well, I'm really not sure. It could be a hurricane, but it could be a large waterspout," he answered, squinting to study the large mass of purple clouds writhing madly above the water. "A really large waterspout," he muttered.

The water close to the beach was eerily calm. There was a thick, very dark line marking a clear division between the peaceful waters and the black, roiling waves tossing and turning underneath the lightning-ridden clouds rumbling above.

To put it mildly, it was frightening.

"Hold on a second, guys," Nathan said shakily. "Calm down."

I think, somehow, we were about to calm down. I mean, I was. I really was. Except… well, there was this streak of lightning that zapped from the clouds to the water, and a loud burst of thunder that made everyone jump.

Including me.

Did I mention I jumped into Jackson's arms?

That was kind of nice, actually, but mostly embarrassing. Before I could even apologize, his chest started rumbling, and I realized he was talking. I was losing it already, and it was all because of that stupid streak of lightning.

"OK, guys, Nathan's right. We need to hurry up and find shelter. That thing looks…" Jackson's voice faded as an even louder roar of thunder reverberated all around us.

"Gnarly?" Eric supplied.

"Sure. Gnarly. Let's get more inland."

Still holding me, he led the others into the jungle.

.

"OK. Lex, didn't you say something about a shelter you were making?" Daley asked. We all looked toward the little guy in surprise. Lex designed a shelter?

"Yeah, well… it's more of a design. I haven't started it at all, something I now regret," he answered with an apprehensive look towards the edge of the jungle.

"OK, well, let's start building it!" Nathan exclaimed, rubbing his hands together.

"Do you think we could build it soon enough, Lex?" Jackson asked, staring at Lex intently.

"Well… by my calculations, I think that huge storm will only get here in two days. Meaning, we'd have only today and tomorrow to build this thing. But that's just a rough estimate-"

"Then let's do this," Taylor said, determined.

"Yeah, let's. Do you have your design written down someplace?" I asked. Lex nodded and reached into his pocket. He pulled out a crumpled, folded banana leaf with markings all over it.

"There was a pen on the floor of the plane behind one of the seats," he offered as an explanation.

Nathan peered at Lex's design. "Lex… this is genius. I can't believe you were able to think of all this," he said in awe.

"Well, no, I was just trying to find a structure we could build into the ground while using the trees as support," he said modestly. Daley smiled.

"No, you're just a genius," she laughed.

"OK, guys, we don't have much time," Jackson said. "What do we need for this?"

"Um," Lex fumbled with the leaf, "we need food, especially coconuts, both for their husks and nutritional value."

"On it," Nathan said, striding away.

"Uh… we'll need to dig a huge hole right… here," Lex continued, marking a spot next to a huge, bent tree.

"But that tree is bent," Taylor said slowly.

"Yes, but not necessarily weak. And if it falls, it gives us even more cover from the storm. Anyway, the hole needs to be huge, but not too huge. Like… from here to… here." He marked the places with his foot.

"OK. Mel, you and I will start digging, and if Nathan finds enough coconuts, he'll help, too," Daley said, already heading towards the spot he'd marked.

"That's not all we need," Lex said slowly. "We still need plenty of strong wood to support the hole inside as well as cover the top of it. Without support, the hole could cave in on us. To put it mildly, that would be terrible. Plus, we'll need a light source, something that won't blow out too easily or that we can restart. If only we had one of those flashlights that you can recharge by shaking…" he mused longingly.

"OK, so Eric and I will go look for strong wood on the floor and we'll break branches if we have to. Taylor, you go get all the flashlights and batteries we can find, and charge all of them," Jackson ordered. He and Eric ran further into the jungle.

"What about me?" Lex asked quietly. Daley looked up, guilt rushing over her features at forgetting to make Lex a part of this.

"Lex," she said commandingly, "you're in charge of the whole thing. Make sure the hole is big enough, make sure there are enough coconuts, make sure of everything." Her little brother nodded dutifully, his eyes bright with the chance to lead for once.

"You got it," he said as he scampered towards where Nathan was.

"Hey," I murmured while digging into the ground with my bare hands, "don't we have shovels somewhere?" In five minutes, we'd barely scratched the ground.

Daley froze, the dirt caked on her hands plopping soundlessly to the ground. "I'm such an idiot," she muttered before looking up at me. "Well, we don't have shovels, but there's tons of driftwood around here that we could use to help get more dirt out."

"But won't we need that as support? Plus, we need wood for the roof, right?"

"No, no," she said impatiently, "driftwood is too weak for that. I think it might be strong enough to help get the dirt out, though. And we can make a moredefined shape with its help," she said, already running out to the beach. I followed her, brushing dirt off my hands as I ran. I frowned at the dirt caked into my fingernails. I was no Taylor, but the sight made me want to mourn the loss of hygiene. Then, all thoughts of hygiene (and, everything else, really) were swept out of my brain by the sight of the huge storm in front of me. I noticed Daley had frozen, too. It wasn't much closer than it was before, but I could tell that it had moved.

"Oh, my…" Daley trailed off. I nudged her shoulder, and she turned huge, frightened eyes to me.

"Come on. We gotta make this hole. Without it, we won't have a shelter to save us from this," I gestured to the huge calamity about to descend on us. She nodded. In no time, we found two large pieces of driftwood that seemed easy enough to handle as well as sturdy enough for the job ahead of us.

.

Nathan had collected most of the food that they would need for a week in the hole. He frowned at the huge pile. Was this really going to fit into the hole with all of them? Just then, Lex popped in through the foliage.

"Nathan? Got everything?"

"Hey, just the man I wanted to see. Whose digging the hole?"

"Mel and Daley. Why?"

Nathan drew in a sharp breath. Only two people were digging the hole? And Mel wasn't exactly the strongest of them either… He ran a hand through his hair.

"I got everything, but I'm afraid that the girls won't be able to dig a hole big enough for all of this plus all of us."

Lex scrutinized what Nathan had collected.

"Hm… maybe I could get Jackson to help dig. It shouldn't be too hard to get wood. Right now you need to get all of this to the hole and dump it inside just in case the storm comes early and we don't have time to get everything," Lex decided.

"But if it comes early, will we have room with all of this?" Nathan objected.

"We'll sit on everything and each other if we have to," Lex said decisively. "I'll help you, and then let's help Taylor take care of the light and heat we'll need. I'll be right back after I get Jackson to help the girls," he said over his shoulder as he ran back through the foliage.

.

Lex was out of breath by the time he got to Jackson and Eric. He had pumped his legs harder than he ever had in his life in an effort to efficiently use the limited time they had.

"Jackson!" he gasped, panting for breath. "Go… help… girls dig…" Jackson raised an eyebrow.

"Where do you need to go next, Lex?" he asked.

"Nath-" he gasped- "an."

"Got it." Jackson fluidly swung Lex onto his back and ran to Nathan, dropping Lex off there. Lex shot Jackson a grateful look.

"Hey- on your way to the hole, can you carry some of this food? It's an emergency precaution," Lex explained. Jackson accepted it without a word.

.

I wiped sweat off of my forehead, looking up just in time to see Jackson with a huge pile of fruits in his arms. He looked tired already, and we'd only been working for half an hour.

"Daley," he called, "Lex sent me to help you, but he wants to dump all the food in just in case the storm comes much earlier." Daley looked around at the small progress we'd made. The hole was nothing more than a 3 foot by 3 foot square, and it was only knee deep. Plus, it was nothing but dirt. She winced at the thought of dumping all of that food on bare dirt.

"Hang on, let me get leaves to cover the ground with," she said, running off.

Jackson sat down, his feet swinging into the small hole. "Hey," he said to me, managing a small grin. The grin faded easily though. I could tell he wanted to be digging, but he didn't want to ruin the food in his arms either.

"Hey," I answered. I didn't stop digging with my piece of driftwood. It had already broken once and seemed to be on the verge of breaking again. I swallowed hard.

"You okay?"

"…Not really," I sighed. "We haven't made much progress at all, and that storm's getting closer every minute. Daley thinks it might end up coming tomorrow after all."

"So does Lex," Jackson said after a pause. I almost dropped the driftwood, but I stopped myself. I _couldn't_ stop working, not when we might need this flimsy shelter in a matter of a few hours. It'd been about an hour after lunch that we'd finally noticed the huge hurricane. The heavy clouds that Taylor had complained were taking away her tan had transformed into our worst nightmare. We only had a few hours, if Daley and Lex were to be believed.

"Why didn't he tell us?" I whispered. Jackson's eyes were worried.

"Well, he didn't want to worry us. Plus, he hadn't realized how fast the storm was moving…" he trailed off, before looking at me. "You think this thing could… could kill us?" he asked quietly. I held in a shiver.

"I-I don't know." We stayed in silence until Daley returned with a pile of huge banana leaves in her arms. She laid them down on the floor of the hole and nodded to Jackson. He put the fruits inside, careful to keep them from bruising before jumping in to help dig.

"Wait, you might need to get some driftwood to help you dig," I suggested.

"Nah, not really. I dig better like this." We watched in awe as he quickly extended our hole half a foot with his bare hands in five minutes.

"Well, okay then. Why don't we expand our hole while you make it deeper?" Daley suggested, turning to me to check for my approval. I nodded.

He shrugged.

"Alright, then. Let's do this fast."

Lex and Nathan popped in five minutes later, hidden behind a towering stack of fruit. Jackson jumped up to help them unload their bundle into the hole carefully. Daley and I raised our eyebrows.

Just how long would this hurricane last?

.

Four hours later, and our hole was deep enough, wide enough, and long enough. Nathan, Lex, Taylor, and Eric had all helped. We'd dug the perfect hole without bruising a single fruit, a feat no one thought we could do. The fruit now sat in one corner out of the way of was just one problem.

_We couldn't get out._

Daley smacked her forehead. "We really shoulda thought this one through," she said, her palm over her eyes.

"No problem guys," Nathan said. "We'll just dig stairs." He and Jackson started feverishly digging out steps into the wall of the hole. Nathan stepped on one, and we all watched. I held my breath. Just as Nathan lifted his other foot from the ground, the steps crumbled. He toppled to the ground, and the entire wall of the hole gave way, crashing down. He coughed.

"We need a better idea," Jackson said, helping Nathan out of the mess.

"At least the hole's bigger," Taylor said hopefully.

Lex shook his head. "We're stuck." I stared at the gray sky and felt a drop of rain fall onto my nose.

"Oh, crap," someone whispered.

We were stuck in a hole that had no supports to keep it from falling in on us with no roof to protect us from the storm. And, to top it off, it was starting to rain. Was the storm already here? More importantly, I thought as I scooted closer to Jackson, was this the end for all of us?

* * *

**_author's note:_** ...Yup. After months of hiatus, that's all I could come up with. I can't believe I started this story more than a year ago with only 11 chapters to show for it T.T ANYWAY, thanks for your patience! Review, maybe?


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